trea turner mets free agency
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As free agency opened up and the MLB offseason began in earnest with the GM Meetings in Las Vegas, we’ve already had juicy rumors floating around. After the Mets made Edwin Diaz the highest-paid reliever in baseball history, there were rumblings about how much they liked shortstop Trea Turner.

At just 29 years old, he can do it all. Turner has elite speed as a stolen-base threat and top-of-the-order hitter. He has 20-homer pop in his bat, too. Last but most certainly not least, Turner has shown an ability to play multiple positions.

The Mets, who have Francisco Lindor locked in at shortstop for the remainder of this decade, would need Turner to shift positions to come in Flushing. Is that something he’d consider? One would imagine he would if the situation dictated as such. We can look to Trevor Story’s deal with the Boston Red Sox last spring to play second base as an example of this.

It doesn’t seem like Turner will need to switch positions to get the payday he and his representation desires, though.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post recently opined that a Turner-Mets agreement doesn’t make much sense. Among the reasons he mentioned was his market of interested teams. There are many squads in need of a shortstop for 2023. While there are plenty of above-average shortstops on the open market this winter, Turner will likely be one of the most popular.

At first, I didn’t think it was a huge deal because we don’t know exactly what Turner wants. And while he’ll consider all the situations put in front of him, he proclaimed to be an “East Coast guy“. So, that plus other factors we don’t know about could play a role in his deciding whether being a shortstop is at the top of his priority list. I mean, we also know he likes playing at Citi Field, so why not make it his home for the foreseeable future, right?

But of course, there’s a chance he could get everything he’s looking for. That includes getting the big payday he’s seeking while still playing shortstop for a contender on the East Coast. Oh, and what if he could also get reunited with a former teammate he enjoyed playing with in the past?

Yes, folks — I’m talking about the Philadelphia Phillies. If there’s something worse than watching your favorite team not getting an elite player, it’s watching a division rival acquire them. Especially on the heels of reaching the World Series:

We know the Phillies have no problem paying big money for impact players. A big part of Philly’s NL pennant-winning core — Bryce Harper, Nick Castellanos, Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, and Zack Wheeler — were outside acquisitions. The one thing Turner would also bring to Citizens Bank Park is an above-average glove.

The Phillies overcame their defensive shortcomings throughout most of October. But putting Turner at shortstop and getting Harper back in the outfield changes the dynamic of their defense.

If the offers are similar, the Los Angeles Dodgers — Turner’s most recent team — reportedly believe the shortstop would choose an East Coast team. MLB Network’s Jon Morosi also mentioned at the GM Meetings that Turner would love to play with Harper again.

We can never count the Mets out in free agency anymore, especially if they covet a particular player. It’s not surprising to hear of New York’s fondness of Turner because most teams probably feel the same way. But given the circumstances and all these rumors connecting him to Philly, it seems like more of a nice thought than anything else.

Matt Musico can be reached at [email protected] and you can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.

Matt Musico is an editor for ESNY. He’s been writing about baseball and the Mets for the past decade. His work has been featured on numberFire, MetsMerized Online, Bleacher Report, and Yahoo! Sports.