The New York Mets not only made the postseason in 2024, but they also eliminated the Milwaukee Brewers and the Philadelphia Phillies in the postseason to reach the NL Championship Series. They even took the Los Angeles Dodgers to six games there and were much more competitive than anyone thought before the start of the season.
You could say they were a star or two away from really challenging for the title, and they have a golden opportunity to pursue and sign outfielder Juan Soto in the off-season.
Former Mets pitcher and current analyst Ron Darling, however, doesn’t think their off-season should center exclusively on Soto and wouldn’t judge the team solely on their ability to land him.
“Juan Soto is as great a hitter as I’ve ever seen and Aaron Judge had a great season, but one player doesn’t make it. I don’t know, maybe you get two $300 million players. The Mets proved this season that they have a lot there, and adding to that nice mix is going to be fun. I wouldn’t judge it by, ‘If you don’t get Soto, then you have no chance to win,'” he said, per SNY.
Darling wants the Mets to splash the cash around
Soto is comfortably getting at least $500 million due to his age (he just turned 26), track record, clutch gene, and offensive excellence: he just posted a .988 OPS season with a career-high 41 homers and 128 runs while being nominated for the Gold Glove award.
He could even push close to $600 million and has stated he wants $700 million. The Mets are one of the few teams that can pay that hefty fee, but Darling would love to see them spreading that cash in two or three players.
The Mets could use some pitching reinforcements, and there will be stellar arms such as Corbin Burnes, Blake Snell, Max Fried and more. Alex Bregman, Tyler O’Neill, Teoscar Hernandez and several other top hitters also populate the market.
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The Mets do seem obsessed with the idea of landing Soto, but if they can’t, there will be other targets. The former Yankees outfielder is one of the few players in free agency that can really move the needle, though.