Mets one of four wooing Cespedes
The Mets are interested in signing free agent Yoenis Cespedes to a new deal sooner rather than later, and the outfielder’s camp would also like to hammer out a deal — wherever he winds up — by early December.
According to a source, the Mets are one of four teams in serious pursuit of Cespedes, who opted out of the final two years of the deal worth $47.5 million he signed with the Mets last offseason and then declined the Mets $17.2 million qualifying offer.
Given his desire to finalize a new contract — as well as the fact that Cespedes is at or near the top of available sluggers on the market — a repeat of last year’s prolonged negotiations appears unlikely, especially with the winter meetings approaching in the first week of next month.
General manager Sandy Alderson told WOR on Wednesday that Cespedes “has texted the organization and indicated his interest in coming back.”
On Tuesday, Jose Reyes and Curtis Granderson both expressed hope Cespedes would find his way back to Queens, but if he winds up elsewhere, the Mets would receive a draft pick from whomever he signs with.
The Mets, though, would rather keep the 31year-old who could earn a deal in the $100 million range after leading the team with 31 homers in 2016 despite being hampered by a quad injury.
Mets brass is confident they don’t need to be the highest bidder in order for Cespedes to return, but they clearly face stiff competition from plenty of other teams in search of a powerful right-handed bat. San Francisco, Toronto, Baltimore and Washington are among the teams that have previously been linked to Cespedes.
That pursuit could push the Cuban’s price closer to $125 million over five years.
Among the other bats also on the free-agent market are Jose Bautista and switch-hitter Dexter Fowler, who didn’t pick up his option with the Cubs. Fowler, a natural center fielder, nearly signed three-year deal with the Orioles prior to spring training, but ultimately opted to go back to Chicago, where he played a key role in the Cubs historic World Series run.
David Wright, who underwent surgery to repair a herniated disk in his neck in June, has not begun baseball activities, according to Alderson. After the season ended, Wright said he expected to visit Dr. Robert Watkins in early December to get clearance. Wright also suffers from spinal stenosis, which he will have to manage for the rest of his career.