The New York Mets’ primary focus this offseason will be retaining their ace in Jacob deGrom.
deGrom has won two Cy Young Awards during his time with the Mets and has been selected to the All-Star squad four times.
He also earned Rookie of the Year honors in 2014.
Now, the veteran right-hander is a free agent.
However, Mets general manager Billy Eppler made an interesting comment, saying that while deGrom is the team’s top priority, the Mets have other players on their radar and that their next move isn’t contingent on the 34-year-old either re-signing or departing.
Eppler stated that the Mets don’t need deGrom to re-sign in order to start thinking about making other moves.
Billy Eppler indicated the Mets don’t need to sign Jacob deGrom before making other moves
— Pat Ragazzo (@ragazzoreport) December 1, 2022
Mets GM Sheds Light On Offseason Plan
This is an interesting take, as one would expect the vast majority of the Mets resources to be dedicated to bringing back the veteran ace.
Still, the Mets have other priorities too.
Outfielder Brandon Nimmo remains unsigned, and the Mets could benefit from retaining the 30-year-old speedster.
The Winter Meetings will kick off on Monday next week in San Diego.
deGrom has already been approached by the Texas Rangers, who are looking for starting pitching help.
But if the two-time Cy Young walks, New York still has Max Scherzer at the top of its rotation.
As of now, it appears that deGrom is the Mets top priority, but as Eppler alluded to, the team won’t be playing the waiting game and they will be focusing on other potential areas of improvement.
NEXT: Mets Reportedly Have Another Pitcher They Want To Retain