The Mets will not pursue B.J. Upton or Shane Victorino this offseason, according to the New York Daily News’ Andy Martino.
The Mets don’t think it’s time to commit a lot of money to outfielders, according to two “high-rankings team insiders.” While the team has yet to finalize their offseason approach, it seems unlikely that the Mets will offer multi-year deal to any outfielder.
Next year’s payroll has yet to be determined, but it is probably only going to be a slight increase. The club’s payroll this season is about $90 million. Though the team won’t spend a ton on the free-agent market, they will explore trading for outfielders.
Jason Bay, Lucas Duda and Mike Baxter have all struggled this season, and Martino doesn’t see any of them as full-time players. He predicts that outfielder Andres Torres will be non-tendered. The team wants to keep Jordany Valdespin as a utility guy, and will attempt to re-sign free-agent Scott Hairston. Martino mentions that the team has some talent in the minor leagues, but that they won’t be ready to contribute by next April.
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