Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
According to Andy Martino of SNY, the Mets have identified Taijuan Walker as their main target with only weeks left before the start of the 2021 season. Walker, 28, is one of the top starting pitchers on the free agent market.
For his career, Walker has posted a line of 35-34 and an ERA of 3.84. His best season came back in 2017 with the Diamondbacks when the righty posted a 2.5 fWAR through 28 starts. Last season, he posted a fWAR of 0.6, a K/9 of 8.44, and a BB/9 of 3.21. Walker only pitched in 53 innings, and went 4-3 over 11 starts with an ERA of 2.70.
Martino concluded his report by saying, “If [Walker] and the Mets do not agree, the team could pivot back to Jake Odorizzi. They might be interested in Odorizzi on a one-year deal; earlier in the offseason he had been seeking three years.”
Metsmerized‘s Mike Mayer reported earlier this week that the Mets remained in contact with Walker and that he was still looking for a multi-year deal at $10 million per year.
We will keep you posted on this story as it continues to develop.
