Juan Soto isn't the only free-agent target the Mets should steal from Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox entered the offseason with an aggressive strategy to bounce back after a .500 season landed them third in the AL East division and five games out of the Wild Card round. Boston GM Craig Breslow pushed hard for Juan Soto. But as smoke cleared, the Soto sweepstakes had been won by Steve Cohen and the over 3/4th’s of a billion dollars he spent.

After Soto landed with the Mets, Breslow successfully nabbed Garrett Crochet as a satisfactory consolation prize. But the Red Sox aren’t done adding starters. Reports have it that the BoSox are in talks with former stud southpaw John Means. While Means might be a good fit in Boston and is an exceptional target for a team in need of pitching help, he should be another target the Mets should be willing to pry away from Beantown.

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John Means is a perfect fit for the Mets

Having lost Luis Severino and with Jose Quintana and Sean Manaea testing the open waters of the free agent market, the Mets are in desperate need of pitching. The three aforementioned hurlers were the Mets’ top performing pitchers in 2024 with Kodai Senga on the IL. Since the offseason began, the Mets have added Frankie Montas, Clay Holmes, Brandon Waddell, and have shown interest in Nick Pivetta. Both Waddell and Holmes are unproven as starters while Montas and Pivetta have recently only thrown to ERAs above 4.00 (Pivetta has never thrown to an ERA below 4.00).

If there is one thing this tells us, it’s that the Mets are under budgetary restrictions after signing Soto. The Mets are after potential impact pitchers at a low price and are willing to take gambles if it means they save money. This makes Means the perfect bet.

John Means hasn’t thrown a full season since 2022. He is coming off a second Tommy John surgery and may be ready for the second half of next season. However, in the only two full seasons he has pitched, Means has impressed. His 3.60 ERA in 2019 earned him the runner-up title in the Rookie of the Year race. He again flashed his potential in 2022 throwing to a 3.62 ERA. He maintains a career 3.68 ERA over 401 innings through his seven major league seasons.

Means is a clear injury risk which makes his market price rather low. However, he has a high upside which should set up an appealing low-risk high-reward gamble. At the low price and with his talent, he represents a clear upgrade to the Mets’ rotation on a strict budget if he can stay healthy. With a proposition such as this, it’s clear why the Red Sox want him. For the Mets, he should be a prime candidate to snag before he lands in Beantown.