00:00All right. Kyle Tucker will not be coming to Flushing. He will not be a New York Met news coming down from our John Heyman. He reported that he would not be signing with the Mets. And then we found out later news is broken by Jeff Passan of ESPN that Kyle Tucker will be signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers, a four year, $240 million deal. Now this brings up a lot of questions around the Mets. Notably, I think at the top, what is plan B for the Mets? And that was a question all along.
00:28The Mets had aggressively got into the game of the Kyle Tucker sweepstakes. They had offered short term deals anywhere between 120 to $140 million as was reported for three years. So the Mets were aggressive with their offer. You have to give David Stern some credit for that. They got themselves in the game. Ultimately, Kyle Tucker chose the Dodgers, said four years, $240 million. That's a lot of money. Now we do not know about if there are any deferrals with the deals yet at the time of me recording this.
00:58So you wonder how that all plays out because it is the Dodgers. However, that is a $60 million annual average value. If there are no deferrals on this deal, that is a lot of money for Kyle Tucker there as a guy who'd be making a ton of money and would have been the highest paid player on the Mets roster.
01:16So the Mets probably were not willing to go that high, but they did get themselves in the game. So I think when you look at that, you can say, hey, David Sterns aggressively pursued Kyle Tucker. Ultimately, he did not land him. Ultimately, it still comes down to, OK, what is plan B?
01:32Cody Bellinger. Is he an option rumored to be trying to get back to the Yankees looking for a longer term deal that has been reported as terms of in terms of Cody Bellinger and what he wants.
01:43But the Mets, David Sterns, we know they don't want to give out longer term deals to guys who are in the middle of their prime or on the other side of 30 years old.
01:52So maybe Cody Bellinger, who I think could be a good fit for the Mets in terms of what he can do and his positional versatility.
01:59But where do the Mets want to go on a contract with him if he is indeed an option?
02:04After that, there's not much in terms of the free agent market that you're looking at in terms of outfield options for the Mets.
02:10Maybe you've got some platoon options like an Austin Hayes that can work, but that's definitely a drop below.
02:16We're talking about Kyle Tucker and Cody Bellinger. So the real big question is, what is the plan B?
02:20Where do the Mets go from here? Before I get to that, Mets fans, I think it's fair to say if you're disappointed here.
02:26The Mets got into the game here. They were not able to bring back Edwin Diaz. He goes to the Dodgers.
02:32They were in the game here for Kyle Tucker. He goes to the Dodgers.
02:36Feels like with the Dodgers, the rich are just getting richer right now.
02:39I can understand if you're a Mets fan, the way this offseason has gone a little bit frustrating.
02:44And you're probably wondering, where's this bat coming from that the Mets need to add, particularly in the outfield?
02:49Now, David Sterns did say he would add another outfielder.
02:52So this team would add another outfielder to the roster sometime between now and opening day.
02:57I'm sure that will happen. The question is, who will that person be?
03:01Will that bat be good enough to help this lineup and impact winning for the Mets in 2026?
03:06That is the question. Right now, the options seem very slim, particularly in the free agent market.
03:14But now you've got to start thinking, OK, David Sterns, do you have to look at the trade market?
03:18And I'm sure David Sterns will. He's going to have to explore the trade market because I said the options are really slim.
03:24Don't have all the names. And I think a lot of that will come out in the next couple of days.
03:28You'll hear names of players linked to be going to the Mets or the Mets could trade for and what they may have to give up.
03:35But it's very clear. The Mets still need another bat. They still need another outfielder.
03:39They cannot go into the season with the outfield as is.
03:42And Mets fans are going to be looking for that person that can fill that role.
03:46However, it was not going to be Kyle Tucker. He goes to the Dodgers four years, $240 million.
03:53Feels like another L for the Mets. And I understand why fans are going to feel that way.
03:58However, you've got to wait and see how things can play out in the trade market as the pressure continues on David Sterns to add another bat to this Mets lineup.
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