Mets were in on Grant Balfour
After the Tampa Bay Rays reportedly inked relief ace Grant Balfour, baseball insider Ken Rosenthal tweeted this:
Sources: #Mets made offer to Balfour that exceeded #Rays’ two-year, $12M bid. Balfour preferred to be closer to his home in Clearwater, Fl.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) January 23, 2014
So, Sandy Alderson was interested in bolstering his bullpen with a veteran arm – we knew that. We just thought it would be someone like a David Aardsma or Joel Hanrahan, not an established closer like Balfour.
Speaking of closing, would Balfour have closed for the Mets or set up Bobby Parnell? Seems like the team would have wanted him as insurance in case Parnell wasn’t ready for Opening Day. And if Parnell was, Balfour would have handled the eighth inning.
I wonder if Balfour also took that into account when making his decision – I’m sure he wants to remain a closer.
It’s also interesting that the Mets were willing to spend more than $6 million AAV on a two-year deal. That suggests that they still have money to spend, despite the fact that they appear to be at or nearing their rumored payroll limit.
Perhaps they’ll spend that money on another reliever or two, or maybe (dare I say) Stephen Drew. The free agent shortstop seems to be less and less in demand, which should drive down his price. If he and his agent, Scott Boras, get desperate enough, they may even settle for a one-year deal.
Regardless, it sounds like the Mets are not done spending just yet.
