Aside from the signings of Frankie Montas and Clay Holmes, who will join Kodai Senga and David Peterson as two of five or six members of the 2025 starting rotation, the Mets — like pretty much every team — haven’t done much of substance in what has been another slow-moving offseason.
A lot of that has to do with Juan Soto, who remains on the market and whose decision should open the floodgates when it comes to other free agents signing.
Soto is obviously at the top of the Mets’ checklist, but there’s a lot more to be done.
Here’s what David Stearns and the Mets have on their plate as they build what is expected to be a serious World Series contender…
Get a Juan Soto resolution
The Soto sweepstakes are winding down, and while there are technically five teams still in the mix, this feels like a three-team race.
It hasn’t been reported that the Dodgers are out, but they have seemingly been on the periphery. They can do anything they want. Sign Soto. Sign Corbin Burnes. Sign Pete Alonso and make him the DH. But just because they can doesn’t mean they will. And it feels highly unlikely Soto will be a Dodger.
As far as the Blue Jays, SNY’s Andy Martino reported earlier this week that while Toronto is expected to bid high for Soto, the Jays are viewed as a “less likely landing spot.”
The Red Sox have a ton going for them, including one of the best farm systems in baseball, a strong core, and a rich history of players from the Dominican Republic — including David Ortiz, who has been recruiting Soto.
The Yankees are the Yankees, and have the wherewithal to spend a ton on Soto. But Hal Steinbrenner has said multiple times lately that maintaining $300 million-plus payrolls year over year is unsustainable. So it seems one of two things have to be true. The Yanks will either change their philosophy when it comes to team-building, or hope Soto leaves money on the table to return to a team that might have a hard time building a strong roster around him.
Then there’s the Mets, who have the ability to easily outbid the field for Soto — by a lot if Steve Cohen chooses. They also have a great case beyond the money, including a very strong core, a rising farm system, and stability at manager and atop the front office. It can also be argued that aside from the Dodgers, the Mets are in the best position of any other team to be a perennial World Series contender for the duration of Soto’s contract.
