Blue Jays: Carlos Correa may have helped land a new outfielder in free agency
The New York Mets performed the equivalent of putting drunk goggles on fans of Major League Baseball and swooped in and signed Carlos Correa. This came out of nowhere as it appeared to be a foregone conclusion that the star shortstop would be headed out west. The new contract was signed after Correa’s fallout with the San Francisco Giants over issues with his physical, leaving fans stunned at Mets ability to continuously sign massive free agent deals.
Jeff Passan of ESPN reports that the Mets payroll is currently sitting at $384M, plus the $111M in luxury tax payments. With such an absurd penalty for operating on such a high payroll, it could now be seen as a deterrent to sign further free agents, especially ones that aren’t a perfect roster fit. This would include Michael Conforto.
Conforto, a former Met who sat out last year as a free agent while recovering from shoulder injury, was reportedly drawing interest from his former club as recently as December 20th.
However, with such a high luxury tax penalty and high payroll in general, Conforto doesn’t appear likely to head back to the Mets at this point. There is no clear fit anywhere on that Mets roster, as they have a plethora of corner outfielders and left handed hitters. This is essentially the polar opposite of the Blue Jays situation, as it seems like they’ve been looking for someone of Conforto’s skillset since 2020.
Since arriving in the bigs, Conforto has been a stud. A career OPS+ of 124 while playing every game as a Met with most of them in right field. The combination of power and on base ability while coming off of an injury, makes for a perfect fit with the Blue Jays.
Conforto would fit in right field, hit high in the lineup in a run producer role, and be a part of a team with solid outfield depth. The outfield depth would play a great part in load management, as there’s an opening at the DH spot, as well as Springer still having the ability to slide to center field should Conforto be playing right field that day.
The fit between Conforto and the Blue Jays is evident, as Conforto checks off every box with the security of not having to play everyday. With the Mets having spent another fortune on a marquee free agent in Carlos Correa, it’s reasonable to expect they’re out on their former star outfielder, leaving him open to the Blue Jays.