The Mets are far from finished in free agency. New York still has needs, especially in the bullpen..
Per SNY’s Andy Martino, “[The Mets] could bring in a name-brand reliever more likely than they were to bring in a name-brand starter, probably.”
Could New York make a run at eight-year veteran Tanner Scott to fill a void in the bullpen? Per Thomas Harrigan of MLB.com, the 30-year-old left-hander is in the top tier of free-agent relievers remaining on the market.
Scott, who made $5.7M last season (h/t: Spotrac), could come cheaper than other relievers who already have signed deals in free agency.
Per Harrigan, three relievers have landed eight-figure deals in free agency: Blake Treinen with the Los Angeles Dodgers, ($22 million), Yimi Garcia with the Toronto Blue Jays ($15 million) and Aroldis Chapman with the Boston Red Sox
($10.75 million).
In December, the Mets signed free-agent reliever Clay Holmes to a three-year, $38M contract (h/t: Sportrac), but New York intends to eventually make the 31-year-old a starter.
Scott had a 1.75 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP with 84 strikeouts in 72 innings and 22 saves last season for the Florida Marlins and San Diego Padres
Scott would be a perfect fit for the Mets, forming a potential lockdown combination at the end of games with Edwin Diaz. This type of leverage in the pen was something the Mets sought in 2023, when they signed reliever David Robertson. Diaz, however, was lost for the season because of a knee injury.
New York also has Dedniel Nunez, Reed Garrett and Jose Buto in the bullpen, but the addition of Scott would put the Mets in an excellent position heading into 2025.