Steve Cohen, David Stearns receive praise from Mets stars for J.D. Martinez signing

The New York Mets were linked to J.D. Martinez all offseason, but consistently said they felt comfortable with players they already had to be their regular DH. Once Martinez's price continued to fall, the Mets finally pounced and agreed to terms with one of the best pure hitters in the league late on Thursday night.

Martinez should provide a major boost to a Mets offense that needed it. He's coming off an unbelievable season in which he hit 33 home runs and drove in 103 runs in just 113 games played. He had a 135 WRC+ which was 16th in the majors among players with at least 450 plate appearances. When healthy, he's a game-changer offensively and can give Pete Alonso the elite protection he's lacked for pretty much his entire career.

Mark Vientos, the player who was going to see most of the DH at-bats, has some potential but he's struggled when given the chance to play in the majors. Signing the player who has been an All-Star in five of the last six years was a no-brainer for a team trying to compete for the playoffs. The people who pulled it off, Steve Cohen and David Stearns, have been getting the credit that they deserve for getting him to sign the dotted line.

Mets stars give credit where it's due for the team signing J.D. Martinez

We already knew how badly Brandon Nimmo wanted the Mets to add a player of Martinez's caliber, but both Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor couldn't have been more complimentary of the player the team was adding.

Alonso saying that "it's a huge message to the guys in the clubhouse" couldn't be more spot on. The Mets could've prioritized development with a guy like Vientos or even DJ Stewart who showed some promise last season, but they chose to sign the 36-year-old Martinez who can help the team win right now. Martinez obviously isn't part of the team's future plans, but he makes them a whole lot better in 2024, which is exciting for the team's stars who want to win right now.

Francisco Lindor has seen lots of Martinez back from when they were both in the American League. Lindor was in Cleveland while Martinez was in Boston. He might not give anything in the field, but Martinez has, in fact, been one of the best hitters in the league for a long time. Since signing with the Red Sox ahead of the 2018 campaign, Martinez is tied for 18th in the majors with a 134 WRC+. That's ahead of guys like Alonso, Kyle Tucker, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Steve Cohen deserves tons of credit for his willingness to continue to open up his wallet and improve the team. The Mets were already over the highest luxury tax threshold, and this signing only increases their payroll.

Stearns deserves credit for waiting Martinez out to the point where the deal was feasible for the Mets to pull off and then pulling the trigger. By waiting, the Mets got him on extremely favorable terms.

There's nothing for Mets fans or players to complain about with this move. The front office deserves credit for getting it done, and it's good to see the players give them the praise they deserve.