If you’ve ever wondered what the MLB Winter Meetings are like, it’s a lot of standing around. Standing around talking to various people who work in baseball in some capacity — like agents, scouts, league and team personnel — most of whom are wearing quarter zips bearing the logo of their organization. Standing around waiting for media availability to begin, waiting for coffee at a hotel Starbucks or waiting for a drink at the bar.
The last two Winter Meetings have featured a lot more waiting than usual. Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto, two of the game’s biggest stars, held up the hot stove season with their free agencies in 2023 and 2024. Soto did us all a solid by signing with the Mets on the eve of the meetings last year, allowing the market to start moving.
This week in Orlando, it should be different. Finally, we could see a return to baseball’s busy season without a marquee domino that needs to fall first.
The Mets have already been active, making two huge moves over the last two weeks to trade Brandon Nimmo and sign reliever Devin Williams. Other teams have already made notable moves as well, with both the starting pitching and relief pitching markets seeing plenty of activity since the GM Meetings ended last month. Closer Edwin Diaz and first baseman Pete Alonso are still free agents. More clarity on their situations could come this week.
The next moves for the Amazin’s will likely be dependent on how the markets are shaping up. At the moment, that looks like pitching.
The Mets need starting pitching and have made it no secret that they’d like to get an ace-type frontline starter. President of baseball operations David Stearns said that the club will be in the mix for the top arms available. We already know who is available in free agency, but what’s unclear is which pitchers are available through trades.
A month ago, it seemed as though Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal could be had in a trade, but that doesn’t seem to be the case anymore. The same goes for Freddy Peralta, who has one more year on his contract with the Milwaukee Brewers. The Pittsburgh Pirates are open to trading just about anyone not named Paul Skenes, with right-hander Mitch Keller garnering the most trade interest.
Keller is going into his age-30 season with three more years on his contract. He can eat innings, having thrown 194 1/3 in 2023, 178 in 2024 and 176 1/3 in 2025 — more than any Mets starter logged last season. While Keller might not be one of the sexier choices, and he’s certainly not an ace, he’s a solid starter who can limit hard contact and reliably pitch every five days.
Would the Pirates be enticed by Kodai Senga’s upside? Would they be interested in Luisangel Acuña’s speed? The farm system is in a place where the Mets are able to land top players in trades. They have too many young infielders and not enough places to play them, so one, if not more of them will have to be traded, and could be traded for pitching given the team’s need for it.
The top unsigned free agent pitchers are left-handers Framber Valdez and Ranger Suarez. The Mets signing away Saurez from the Philadelphia Phillies would intensify an NL East rivalry, but would be investing in a pitcher who only throws about 90 mph. Right-hander Michael King has some familiarity with manager Carlos Mendoza having played for him with the Yankees. Former Yankees arms have found their way to Queens in recent years, with Williams becoming the latest.
As far as the position player side, the Mets need an outfielder to replace Nimmo. Jeff McNeil is perfectly capable of playing left field, but it sounds like the team wants to maximize his positional versatility by moving him around the diamond more than they have the last few years when he’s been the team’s primary second baseman.
When Nimmo was traded for second baseman Marcus Semien, it seemed as though the writing was on the wall for McNeil. But Stearns talked to the homegrown utility man about what the trade meant for him, and McNeil assured him that he wants to be a part of what the Mets are building this year. Stearns values positional flexibility, and McNeil brings a ton of it with his ability to play just about any position on the field other than catcher and pitcher. McNeil will be 34 next season and has one year left on his contract with a team option for 2027.
Run production is a question for the team without Nimmo. Kyle Schwarber should be a target for the Mets, and it shouldn’t deter them from re-signing Alonso. Steve Cohen should be flexing his financial might this season, especially with a lockout expected next year.
A potential work stoppage will be a storyline at the Winter Meetings, though not a popular one. That’s a story for a different day. Now, it’s time to stand around while figuring out where the Mets go next.
