The New York Mets have emerged as the favorites to sign free-agent pitcher and reigning Cy Young award winner Trevor Bauer, a source told Metsmerized.
Source: I’m being told that the #Mets have now emerged as the favorites to land free-agent pitcher Trevor Bauer. While no deal is imminent at the moment, talks have been heating up as of late
— Pat Ragazzo (@ragazzoreport) February 4, 2021
While no deal is imminent at the moment, talks have been heating up between the two sides.
And as Andy Martino of SNY reported on Thursday afternoon, the belief around the industry is that the Mets and Bauer are very serious.
MLB Insider Jon Heyman also hopped in on the action backing up that the Mets are engaged with Bauer and added that the organization expects to hear an answer within the next 24 hours or so.
Mets are engaged with Trevor Bauer. They expect to hear something — one way or another — in the next 24 hours or so. Situation is fluid but there’s hope. @ByRobertMurray tweeted that the sides are talking.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) February 4, 2021
Bauer is said to be open to both short and long term deals — while seeking an AAV of $36 million, which would make him the highest paid starting pitcher in baseball — surpassing Gerrit Cole‘s $35 million AAV with the Yankees.
In mid January, the Mets reportedly offered Bauer between 3-4 years, $30 million a year with opt outs, per Martino.
Signing Bauer would give the Mets an elite starting rotation along with: Two-time Cy Young award winner Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, Carlos Carrasco and David Peterson.
And when Noah Syndergaard returns from Tommy John surgery later in the season, it will make this group that much scarier.
The 30-year-old Bauer has been heavily linked to the Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers recently with some speculating that he could make his decision in the coming few days.
MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand confirmed the Dodgers were still in the mix for Bauer along with the Mets –while Bauer’s agent Rachel Luba tweeted out that they were down to their final two teams, which provided further evidence that Bauer’s free agency is coming to a head.
Down to 2️⃣
— Rachel Luba (@AgentRachelLuba) February 4, 2021
If the Mets are unable to land Bauer, they could pivot to free-agent starter Jake Odorizzi, who they showed interest in at the beginning of free agency.
Odorizzi has familiarity with Mets pitching coach Jeremy Hefner, who was with the Minnesota Twins as an assistant pitching coach during Odorizzi’s All-Star season back in 2019.
Stay tuned as Metsmerized will have you covered on what’s next in the Bauer saga!
