One of the Mets priorities this offseason is to rebuild a bullpen which had the third worst ERA in all of baseball. Step one was the trade with the Mariners which netted them Edwin Diaz. Step two is finding a set-up man to bridge the gap to Diaz. So far, it appears the Mets are pursuing that pitcher on the free agent market.

According to WEEI, the Mets are one of four teams who are aggressively pursuing Joe Kelly. The Mets face some steep competition for the reliever in the Red Sox, White Sox, and Dodgers. Of that quartet, the Dodgers are rumored to be the most aggressive.

According to Brooks Baseball, Kelly threw his fastball at an average of 99 MPH last year. He utilized four pitches out of the pen, each of which were difficult to lift, which explains his excellent 0.8 HR/9.

Kelly, 30, was 4-2 with a 4.39 ERA, 1.355 WHIP, 4.4 BB/9, and a 9.3 K/9 in 73 appearances last season. He would step up his game in the postseason. In eight of his nine postseason appearances, Kelly did not allow an earned run. Overall, he was 2-1 with a 0.79 ERA, 0.706 WHIP, and a 10.3 K/9. Impressively, he did not walk a batter in his 11.1 postseason innings. On his postseaon success, Kelly would say:

I’m one of those guys, and I proved it in the World Series, I pitched in different innings every single game and had the same success. I’m not saying other guys can’t do it. But I don’t need that dedicated routine where I have to stretch in the sixth, drink my coffee in the seventh and mentally prepare. It’s one of those things where they can say, ‘Hey, Joe you’re in the next batter.’ And I can go in and dominate because mentally I don’t need the same routine. Honestly, the less time the better for me. That’s what I realized as a starter because I had so much time. Doing scouting reports. Having anxiety leading up. Looking at the lineup. It’s one of those things where I think it fits best and it showed throughout the World Series. Any given role, when I’m right, challenging hitters, I don’t need to a routine. I’m not one of those guys who can’t have change to be successful. Just give me the ball when the big outs are needed. Once they call my name I’ll get checked in rather than going through a whole process. That’s never been my MO and I realized that as I became an older player in the league. The less thinking the better. I told them I just want the big outs.

Earlier this offseason, MLB Trade Rumors projected Kelly would receive a three year $27 million in free agency. In the event the Mets do not sign Kelly, there are other options like David Robertson still available. On the Robertson front, it appears the Mets would have competition with the White Sox signing him as well.