Does the Ryne Stanek deal make a Pete Alonso reunion more likely?

Plus, thoughts on the Mets' reported interest in a trio of starting pitchers and another prospects list...

Charles Wenzelberg - NY Post

What’s up with the Mets? 🍎

• The Mets bolstered their bullpen by reportedly re-signing right-handed reliever Ryne Stanek to a one-year contract (story)

• The Mets have spoken to the Padres about RHP Dylan Cease and RHP Michael King, who are both available via trade. The Braves are among other teams also showing interest (Sports Illustrated)

• MLB agents have recently been informed that they can no longer contact free agent 1B Pete Alonso, which suggests that Alonso intends to continue his working relationship with Scott Boras (Sportsnet)

• There is still a school of thought that the Mets and Alonso can come to some sort of agreement (Heyman)

• The Mets attended a bullpen session for former ace Max Scherzer, and have some level of interest in reuniting with the free agent RHP (SI)

• INF Jett Williams ranked (No. 34), RHP Brandon Sproat (No. 62), INF Ronny Mauricio (No. 67), and CF Drew Gilbert (No. 84) all featured in Kiley McDaniel’s Top 100 Prospects for 2025 List (ESPN)

• Spring is (nearly) here! The Mets equipment truck will leave from Citi Field for Port St. Lucie this coming Friday

---

---

Rumor Mill 💨

• The Blue Jays have appeared as a major front runner for the services of RHP Max Scherzer (MLB.com)

• It is appearing less and less likely that free agent 3B Alex Bregman will end up in Boston with the Red Sox (Talkin’ Baseball)

• Nolan Arenado may have to settle for starting the year with the Cardinals with the third baseman’s trade market having all but stalled (MLB Network)

---

Does the Ryne Stanek signing pave the way for a Pete Alonso return? ✍️

New York Post

It was a busy day in Mets land on Wednesday.

The ballclub reportedly brought back right-handed reliever Ryne Stanek to help fortify the bullpen. There were yet more Pete Alonso developments, and there was also some juicy Hot Stove gossip involving starting pitching.

But let’s start with Stanek and Alonso.

Firstly, bringing back Stanek was a smart move. The long-haired, battle-hardened veteran reliever was so-so down the stretch after being acquired by the Mets, before being absolute money in the playoffs. Stanek pitched to a 3.24 ERA over seven postseason appearances, and was without doubt one of the team’s most reliable relievers when it mattered most.

With Stanek back, the Mets now have a pretty loaded bullpen that will be led by Edwin Díaz and the newly acquired A.J. Minter.

However, there is a compelling argument to be made that the Stanek signing could be even more significant.

As SNY’s Andy Martino noted, by opting not to sign a more high-profile and more expensive reliever in the ilk of Kenley Jansen, the Mets have saved themselves some wriggle room when it comes to setting up a long-awaited return for Alonso.

Now, some of you may think that suggesting signing Stanek— a bullpen piece the Mets needed anyway— will directly contribute to improving the chances of an Alonso reunion.

Hear me out.

Per Martino, Stanek will earn between $4 to $5 million in 2025. Jansen probably would have commanded double that, at least. Consequently, the Mets would have been deeper over the top luxury tax threshold for 2025. Stanek’s salary will push them close to that top threshold, but there is now still some space left for another addition.

Plus, if the Mets felt that the door was closed on Alonso, then it is feasible to suggest they would have opted to sign one or two more high-leverage reliever at the top of the market, especially considering that there were still a ton available prior to the Stanek signing. In that world, the front office would have been able to add another elite arm to the bullpen, before bringing in a cheap bat to round out the roster.

Instead, the Stanek addition still gives the Mets some financial flexibility to go out and make a deal with Alonso work. Of course, I'm not saying that an Alonso return is now imminent, but it seems like the chances of that happening have now increased following the Stanek business.

It is clear the Mets need another bat and bringing back Alonso just makes too much sense for all parties.

By not going shopping at the top of the reliever market, hopefully that means the Mets are planning on splashing out at the top of the first basemen market.

---

Some quick notes on the latest starting pitching rumors… ✍️

AP

As I mentioned at the top, Wednesday proved to be an eventful day for the Mets with lots of potential developments emerging.

Many of those developments centered around starting pitching. Per Pat Ragazzo of Sports Illustrated, the Mets have talked to the Padres about Dylan Cease and Michael King. Ragazzo also reported that the Mets were present at a Max Scherzer bullpen session and have some interest in reuniting with their former ace.

Now, on the Cease and King front, I penned a detailed newsletter on Tuesday about why the Mets should be all in on Cease. The righty is a perennial Cy Young candidate, he’s a strikeout machine, and he would give this team a real sure-thing atop the rotation alongside Sean Manaea. Cease would automatically become the No. 2 starter, but he has ace-like stuff and could certainly be the No. 1 guy in a playoff series.

The only negative with Cease is the presumed asking price in trade. The Padres are believed to want a lot in return for the 29-year-old, despite the fact that he’s a free agent after the 2025 season. San Diego could seek a top 5 prospect from the Mets system just as a starting point for a deal.

A cheaper alternative could be King, who doesn’t quite have the same upside or high ceiling as Cease, but would certainly give the Mets more of a sure-thing option in the middle of the rotation. King pitched to a 2.95 ERA over 173.2 innings pitched in 2024, racking up 201 strikeouts and regularly going deep into games. The 29-year-old is also a free agent after the 2025 season, and he’s set to earn just over $8 million this coming year. Perhaps King would cost a top 5 prospect, or a 6-10 and a lower-level prospect as an alternative? Maybe the Mets could include a big-league contract such as Jeff McNeil to lower the cost in prospect currency, and clear some payroll space in the process?

The Mets could potentially afford to trade for King and bring back Alonso - I wouldn’t think this is a one-or-the-other situation.

Gordon Donovan

Finally, a quick note on Scherzer.

I don’t blame the Mets for doing their due diligence by attending a bullpen session. The advantages of potentially signing Scherzer are the fact that you wouldn’t have to give up any prospect capital. And many inside the building know all about Scherzer’s makeup and ability. However, the three-time Cy Young winner hasn’t been able to stay healthy since leaving the Mets, and he’s 40 years old. More regression is to be expected at this point. It seems like getting 20 starts out of Scherzer would be a win at this point in his career. So, in my opinion, adding another less-than-sure thing to a rotation already full of such players would not be a smart move by the front office.

Overall, there appear to be plenty of things bubbling away under the surface for the Mets, and we’ll see what happens over the coming days and weeks. But I think we can be confident in saying that they aren’t done adding to their roster just yet, and that should add more excitement to the start of spring training at least.

---

Around the League 🚩

• The Kansas City Royals agreed to terms with closer Carlos Estévez on a two-year deal (ESPN)

• The Cincinnati Reds swung a trade, acquiring reliever Taylor Rogers from the Giants for RHP Braxton Roxby (FanSided)

• INF Ha-Seong Kim reached an agreement with the Rays on a two-year, $29 million contract with an opt-out after the first season (ESPN)

• The Tigers bolstered their bullpen by signing free agent reliever Tommy Kahnle to a one-year, $7.75 million deal (FanSided)

• The Pittsburgh Pirates announced that 2B Adam Frazier was returning to the team on a one-year deal

• The Chicago Cubs announced a major addition to Wrigley Field, with “The Yard” set to make its debut in 2025 (SBJ)