Fantastic news came out on Christmas Eve that the Mets signed four-time All-Star RHP Dellin Betances. So, are the Mets going to add more players to the bullpen? Right now, it doesn’t appear likely.
While the Mets might be wise to add another bullpen piece, their current roster isn’t flexible. The issue stems from Brad Brach, Justin Wilson, Jeurys Familia, and Michael Wacha being on major league deals.
Obviously, even though they have options on them, the Mets are also not optioning Seth Lugo or Edwin Diaz. This addition leads to the team having seven spots in the bullpen filled already.
The 26th roster spot being added offers the ability to carry eight relievers, but that last spot as of now would go to Robert Gsellman.
Given Gsellman has options, the right-hander might be the most expendable when considering the other seven arms slated to be in the bullpen.
While Gsellman has pitched an average of 71 IP over the past two years in the bullpen, those innings have come with multiple poor outings, which explains his ERA being 4.45 during that period. With that being the case, his roster spot might not need to be guaranteed to him.
If the Mets do decide to option Gsellman, it would open up the possibility of the Mets adding another bullpen piece.
These possibilities could include arms like Pedro Strop, Brandon Kintzler, Steve Cishek, Craig Stammen, or Francisco Liriano.
One of these players, most notably Cishek, could provide a higher floor than Gsellman and would further strengthen the bullpen.
The concern amongst Mets fans would be that the other holes, such as backup catcher and center fielder, would go unaddressed. So, would adding another bullpen piece make it unlikely that they’d acquire players to fill those needs?
I would guess that it would it more likely only one of those needs gets addressed. The Mets would essentially be canceling out the money they just got back from renegotiation Yoenis Cespedes‘ deal due to a grievance, further pushing them closer to the luxury tax.
If the Mets were to add a player to the bullpen at around $6 million, the median value for the CBT would be at $204 million, which would give them only $4 million to work with before hitting the $208 million threshold.
It’s possible the Mets could sign a backup catcher like Kevin Plawecki for that money, but acquiring someone making a salary like that of Starling Marte would be an unlikely addition unless the Mets were to find a way to unload salary.
That being said, it appears worth it when considering how much the bullpen hurt the team this past season.
