Report: Mets sign utility infielder Joey Wendle to one-year, $2M contract

The Mets reportedly make their second signing of the night, bringing in utilityman Joey Wendle in as a depth piece.

The Mets made their second offseason signing of the night, agreeing to sign free agent utility infielder Joey Wendle to a one-year, $2 million contract, according to multiple reports.

The deal is pending a physical.

Wendle, 33, is an experience veteran infielder that has spent time with the A’s, Rays and Marlins during his eight-year major league career. The left-hander was an All-Star as recently as the 2021 season but has struggled offensively since, hitting .238/.275/.335 with five home runs, 40 doubles, 52 RBI and a .610 OPS with a 0.3 fWAR over the last two seasons.

Wendle is known for being a contact hitter – he only has 32 career home runs in 649 major league games – and although he’s historically done better against right-handed pitchers in his career, he actually had reverse splits this past season in a small sample size. Over the course of his big league career, Wendle has hit .269/.313/.401 against right-handed pitchers while hitting just .234/.308/.322 against lefties.

With this signing, Wendle likely steps into the role that former fan favorite Luis Guillorme filled over the last few seasons. While Guillorme undoubtedly provides better defense, his offensive output decreased to the point where he spent a large majority of last season in the minor leagues and was non-tendered earlier in the offseason. Wendle has played second base, shortstop, third base, left field and right field in his career, and started 107 games last season at shortstop for the Marlins. It is likely that Wendle could act as the main back-up shortstop to Francisco Lindor, assuming the club wants to avoid exposing the young Ronnie Mauricio too much at the position.

This isn’t a major signing by any means, but the Mets also need to improve the edges of their roster in addition to bringing in legitimate star power. Plus, at one year for just $2 million, there is little-to-no risk for the Mets financially if Wendle doesn’t produce.