Mets Floated As Possible Destination For Elite Third Baseman In Free Agency

Should New York pursue the star third baseman this offseason?

What will the New York Mets do this offseason?

New York brought in former Milwaukee Brewers executive David Stearns to be the club's president of baseball operations and now he has the job of turning the franchise around. The Mets will be active this offseason and currently have just 28 players on their 40-man roster. New York is sure to make some additions this offseason but it's unclear exactly how much it is willing to spend.

One position of need for the Mets is third base. New York does have young third baseman Brett Baty on the roster, but there has been speculation that the club could look to bring in a bigger name. One player who could fit this description is former Toronto Blue Jays slugger Matt Chapman, according to Bleacher Report's Zachary Rymer.

"Both offensively and defensively, third base was a nightmare for the Mets this year. To the former, the position's .590 OPS ranked 29th out of 30 MLB teams. To the latter, it produced minus-10 Defensive Runs Saved and minus-9 Outs Above Average. It's hard to conjure a better fit for Chapman just on these grounds, and then there's what the Mets can hypothetically afford to spend. 

"They opened this season with a $330.7 million payroll. Their projected spending for 2024 is a mere $267 million. But since the Mets are in a quasi-rebuild right now, it wasn't surprising when (the New York Post's Jon Heyman) reported last Thursday that they "don't seem involved" on Chapman. President of baseball operations David Stearns might as well have confirmed as much when he threw his support behind Baty and fellow young incumbent Ronny Mauricio.

Rymer compiled a list of the top 10 landing spots for Chapman this offseason and had the Mets at No. 8. This isn't the first time New York has been mentioned as a fit for Chapman and likely won't be the last.