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Good morning, Mets fans!
The Mets’ priority at this stage of free agency continues to be a fourth outfielder and on Friday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported that the Mets are considering signing Tommy Pham for that role. Heyman also mentioned the possibility of Trey Mancini, Adam Duvall, Jurickson Profar, or Tyler Naquin. It was previously reported on Thursday that the Mets had been in contact with Andrew McCutchen, but he wound up signing with the Pirates on a one-year, $5 million deal.
Pham and Duvall especially have had success against lefties, an area in which the Mets struggled last year, so it’s no surprise to hear that the Mets are potentially interested in adding one of their bats to the bench. Even at this stage of free agency, the Mets have plenty of options to choose from for their fourth outfielder next year.
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Pete Alonso and the Mets agreed to a one-year, $14.5 million contract to avoid arbitration. According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, it is the largest deal ever for a first baseman in arbitration. In total, the Mets settled with six of their seven arbitration-eligible players.
In an article on MLB.com, Jim Callis noted about Brett Baty: “New York should give him its third-base job at some point in 2023 because he’d offer more offense and at least as much defense as 34-year-old incumbent Eduardo Escobar.”
The Mets announced that they are receiving Luis De La Cruz from the Orioles as the PTBNL in the James McCann trade.
The Mets’ organizational managers for 2023 have become official with Dick Scott managing Triple-A Syracuse, Reid Brignac managing Double-A Binghamton, Chris Newell managing High-A Brooklyn, and Gilbert Gómez managing Low-A St. Lucie.
The Mets re-signed Connor Grey to a minor league deal.
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Juan Soto and the Padres agreed to a one-year, $23 million contract to avoid arbitration.
Lucas Giolito and the White Sox agreed to a one-year, $10.4 million contract to avoid arbitration.
Brandon Woodruff and the Brewers agreed to a one-year, $10.8 million contract to avoid arbitration.
Other notable players who signed contracts to avoid arbitration with their teams include Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Rhys Hoskins, Josh Hader, and Tyler O’Neill.
The Twins signed pitcher Chris Paddack to a three-year, $12.5 million contract extension.
Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic interviewed Carlos Correa, asking him about his unprecedented free agency experience.
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Michael Mayer wrote about the Andrew McCutchen signing, including some other players who make sense for the Mets now that he is off the board.
Michael Mayer also wrote about the Mets’ interest in Tommy Pham.
Michael Famulari analyzed the importance of Brett Baty and Eduardo Escobar to the 2023 Mets in the aftermath of the Carlos Correa deal falling through.
On This Date in Mets History
1998: The Mets signed Japanese pitcher Masato Yoshii to a one-year deal. He would go on to pitch to a 6-8 record with a 3.93 ERA during his debut season, earning a contract extension from the team.
Birthdays: Aaron Altherr (32), Mike Pelfrey (39), Ross Jones (63)
