Opinion: Mets Are Still in Great Shape Even Without Springer

There was a point this offseason, after they had signed James McCann, where it seemed like George Springer was destined to become a Met.

Buster Olney of ESPN was betting his family farm that a deal would get done, while his colleague Jeff Passan was willing to bet his Honda CRV.

Ultimately those bets came up empty, as the Toronto Blue Jays pushed all their chips onto the table Tuesday night, signing Springer to a six-year, $150 million contract. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com would later report that Toronto outbid the Mets by roughly $25 million dollars.

However unlike offseason’s of the past, the Mets plans do not hinge on landing a single player.

While they would have loved to slot Springer into center field everyday, this offseason has already been a success and there are plenty of moves yet to be made.

If the season were to start tomorrow, the Mets would comprise one of the best lineups in the National League with Dominic Smith in left field and Brandon Nimmo out in center.

MLB Network released their annual “Top 10 Left Fielders Right Now” last night, and Smith was ranked sixth on that list. Last week, Nimmo was ranked fifth on their “Top 10 Center Fielders Right Now”.

Considering the fact that Michael Conforto was ranked ninth on that same list for right fielders last year (and is coming off a career-year), it is fair to assume he will crack this year’s top-10 ranking as well.

With all that being said, can we really knock the Mets for not signing Springer when they already feature three top-10 outfielders at their respective positions?

There is no doubting that Springer would have been an excellent fit for the Mets, but they wanted to sign him on their terms and the Blue Jays needed him more. Now the Mets will pivot to some of their secondary options and luckily there is still plenty of talent to chose from.

Jackie Bradley Jr. has always been the top defensive center fielder on the market and as Metsmerized’s Mike Mayer reported weeks ago, the Mets have been in contact with the 30-year-old free agent.

New York could pair Bradley with Jake Marisnick, adding a pair of elite defensive outfielders who could form an exciting center field platoon. With the money that would have been allocated to Springer, the Mets could potentially land both Bradley and Marisnick, while still having some left over to spend on an elite reliever like Brad Hand.

Kike Hernandez has also been mentioned as a potential target for the Mets, as the former Dodger has thrived in a super utility role, with the ability to play everywhere but catcher.

Both the free agent and the trade market are currently saturated with talent, giving New York the freedom to explore all options and search for the best deals.

Let’s also not forget that 2021 is not the end all be all for this team. Steve Cohen expects to be competitive every year and without Springer on the books long-term, there is now even more room to extend players like Conforto and Francisco Lindor, while also being able to spend in free agency next offseason as well.

While it would have been great to see the Mets land yet another superstar this offseason, there is no reason to cry over spilled milk at this point. This franchise is in far better shape than they have been in some time and missing out on a single free agent does not change that in the slightest.