New York Mets bring back old friend on minor league deal

The New York Mets made a couple of minor league signings on Wednesday, as they secured the services of infielder Brian Dozier and brought back their old friend Juan Lagares. MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo reported both transactions.

Lagares joined the San Diego Padres at the start of the offseason, but he requested his release in the middle of July and was granted it. The Mets are the only franchise with which Lagares has played at the major league level.

By now, every Mets fan is familiarized with Lagares’ skill set. He is almost a zero in the power department, but he can play a very good center field even if he is already on the wrong side of 30, at 31 years old. He has a career line of .254/.297/.361.

Having Lagares around to back up center field doesn’t hurt anybody. In fact, he still has that difference-making glove.

The Mets bring Dozier into the fold

On the other hand, the New York Mets also announced an infield reinforcement in Brian Dozier. The experienced second baseman, currently 33 years old, has 192 career home runs and even hit 42 in 2016 with the Minnesota Twins.

Over the duration of his career, Dozier has demonstrated a fine glove at the keystone while providing pop and even a little bit of speed to the teams he has played in. He played last season with the Washington Nationals and helped them get a World Series ring.

He joined the Padres but wasn’t included in the summer camp’s player pool and was let go on July 11. He could be a backup option for the Mets because they have a crowded infield, and several players can defend the second bag, most notably Robinson Cano and Jeff McNeil.

Last season, he hit .238/.340/.430 with 20 home runs and 50 RBI in 135 games last season with the Nats. He could be a sneaky good addition by the Mets in the wake of Jed Lowrie’s placement on the injured list.