Everybody loves a redemption story. It’s a tale as old as time. But how often do former players return to clubs they once played on? Some players left on good terms, and other players not so much. In other situations, players were either experiencing a career rejuvenation or just getting off to a slow start. MMO challenged two writers to decide which players they would want to make a return to Flushing in 2024.
ALLISON WAXMAN
Justin Turner might be the one who got away for the Mets. He might have also been the one to kick off the current trend of “former-Met-turned-Met-killer” that Mets fans love to joke about. What hurt him in the end was he never had a set position, and that cost him playing time. Once the non-tender deadline came around in December 2013, the Mets made the fateful choice not to offer Turner a contract. He wasn’t a bad player, far from it. In his four-year Mets career, he owned a .265/.326/.370/.696 line. The Mets had to choose what to do, and they chose poorly.
He became a two-time All-Star, an NLCS MVP, a Roberto Clemente Award Winner and a World Series Champion with the Dodgers. Turner became their everyday third baseman and played elsewhere in the field when the time called for it. Now is the time for the Mets to make things right and re-sign Turner. He can help mentor the likes of Brett Baty and Ronny Mauricio, and I’m sure he has unfinished business to prove in Queens.
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PATRICK GLYNN
Of all the former Mets the team should try to bring back in free agency, it’s David Robertson. Yes, he pitched poorly in Miami, but it balanced out his results exceeding expected numbers when in New York. The team needs to rebuild the bullpen—again. Robertson could be a good piece to bring in on a one-year deal to do what he was supposed to do last year: set up for Edwin Díaz.
Seth Lugo would be an interesting pick, but it seemed like he wanted out of New York. (Mostly because he wasn’t allowed to start.) Tommy Pham would be nice, too, as Starling Marte insurance. But who knows if he wants to come back after all of the venting he did to the media after he was traded.
