Mets Have Key Advantage in Back Pocket That Could Help in Free Agency

A fast free-agent market could play to the Mets' advantage if David Stearns is aggressive in targeting the team's needs.

If the free-agent market moves quickly, best believe the New York Mets will try to go all in on Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Tarik Skubal. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With the end of the 2026 season on the horizon, the attention in the baseball world will quickly flip to 2027. There is a strong likelihood that an extended work stoppage is in store once the collective bargaining agreement expires on December 1.

League sources told The Athletic's Andy McCullough that they expect a free-agent frenzy in November as teams try to secure talent before said work stoppage. That would track with how teams operated in 2022, when we saw a lot of splashy signings before that year's lockout.

The New York Mets did a lot of business before that lockout, adding four veterans on multi-year deals: Max Scherzer, Eduardo Escobar, Starling Marte, and Mark Canha. With David Stearns looking to take care of important business in the offseason, a fast market could play to the Mets' advantage.

How a free agent frenzy could play to the Mets' benefit

The Mets have a few clearly defined needs entering free agency, including rotation help and an upgrade at first base. If players want financial security before a work stoppage that could see the sport's economic system change, they may look to secure the most money possible quickly. This would allow the Mets to use Steve Cohen's wallet as a weapon.

One area where that could play to their benefit is in pursuit of Tarik Skubal, who is the perfect fit for the Mets' long-standing ace question that Stearns has tried to fix in different ways. Skubal's agent, Scott Boras, has strongly hinted that his client may look to get a contract done before a potential work stoppage to ensure it gets grandfathered into any potential economic changes in the sport.

It is hard to see a large market team more motivated than the Mets to secure Skubal, especially if the Dodgers are truly in a wait-and-see mode with regard to what the economic rules will look like. The Mets are well-positioned to hand Skubal a record-setting deal and have economic flexibility to adapt to any salary structure changes the league imposes.

The true rush could come from the middle class of players, who may be concerned about a potential salary cap and rush to secure their deals before getting squeezed out. This could play to the Mets' advantage, as they can look to get a few players out of a mix of lower-cost free agents on favorable contracts, similar to the Canha and Escobar deals in 2022.

The one thing the Mets cannot afford in this case is for Stearns to be too patient trying to get favorable deals for his needs. If there's a player the Mets like, they need to be all over them early because there's a good chance an already-thin free agent class is equivalent to the waiver wire in a competitive 12-team fantasy football league whenever the work stoppage ends.

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