The start of 2024 looks a lot like the end of 2023 for the Mets.
With spring training set to begin in six weeks, new president of baseball operations David Stearns still has a sizable hole to fill after a strong start to free agency in Queens.
Luis Severino, after a tough final season with the Yankees, remains the team's most expensive offseason signing with a one-year, $13 million contract.
Severino will be joined by fellow rookie Adrian Hauser in a rotation that will also include Kodai Chiga, Jose Quintana and, for now, likely Tyler Megill, with Joey Lucchesi and Jose Butto providing depth.
Obviously, the Mets need to add starters to the rotation and bring in bullpen, third base and outfield help before the season starts.
So far, they haven't been able to land any big names, despite Stearns' resume and Steve Cohen's deep pockets.
With top free agent priority Yoshinobu Yamamoto rejecting them, the Mets could turn to Shota Imanaga, but will be in the market for other long-term deals as the team resets for 2024. They remain passive.
That means left-handed pitchers like Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery are both considered costly to return from strong seasons and are likely to settle elsewhere, leaving the Mets with other options. I'm going to do it.
Imanaga, 30, from Japan, remains an intriguing option ahead of the next tier of free agent candidates that includes Mike Clevinger, Sean Manaea and Hyun-Jin Ryu, who returned from Tommy John surgery last season. .
Ryu, also a left-hander, will turn 37 in March, but after returning in August, he pitched 52 innings in Toronto and had a pretty good ERA of 3.46.
Due to the shortened 2020 season due to elbow surgery and the coronavirus pandemic, Ryu has pitched more than 67 innings in a season only once since 2019.
Nevertheless, the Mets were reluctant to spend a lot of money on their rotation with the loss of Yamamoto, so he was able to work on a one-year contract.
Regarding the batting lineup, he has expressed interest in former Yankees player Gio Urshela. He is scheduled to return from an injury-plagued season in 2023 and is part of a dominant third base class behind Matt Chapman.
The Mets are also considering reuniting with Justin Turner, with the former Met able to rotate between DH, third base, and second base, as well as potentially filling in for Pete Alonso initially.
JD Martinez also has potential as a DH.
Whit Merrifield played as an outfielder and second baseman for the Blue Jays last season and is a free agent, but with Ronnie Mauricio out with a tear, the Mets' current needs include his skill set. may be too similar to Jeff McNeil's. In the ACL, only Brett Batty and Mark Vientos could remain as everyday options at that position.
While this isn't the start of the Sterns era that many Mets fans may have envisioned, Stearns and Cohen have made it clear they intend to remain competitive in 2024.
