Second baseman and soon to be free agent Neil Walker is hoping to remain with the New York Mets, according to a report in the Charlotte Observer.
Walker, 31, underwent back surgery last week and saw his career best season come to an end after posting a .282 batting average and a .823 OPS while hitting 23 home runs in 113 games with the Mets.
“I’m hopeful that we have positive discussions here,” he said Sunday. “It makes a lot of sense.”
“This is a good fit. This looks good, but we don’t know what else is out there. We don’t know where teams might be coming from. The free-agent market this year is kind of weak, especially at the infield position, so you never know what could happen.”
Before Walker saw his season come to an end, Mets GM Sandy Alderson had said the team would be exploring a multi year deal with Walker’s agents. But it’s not clear if those anticipated talks are now off the table.
At the very least, it was a foregone conclusion that Walker would have received a $16 million qualifying offer from the Mets this offseason to net themselves a first round draft pick. But that too likely evaporated with the back surgery and the uncertainty if Walker will be healthy by spring training.
Still, the Mets might be able to roll the dice and sign Walker to a discounted one-year deal while allowing Walker to rebuild his value. He was earning $10.5 million for the 2016 season, so perhaps an $8-9 million dollar deal could do the trick, with maybe a team option year for $12 million if Walker is looking for something more.
