Scott Long
4/9/21
On the eve of Opening Day, the New York Mets and Francisco Lindor agreed to terms on a 10-year extension worth $341 million. The signing signaled that the Mets would be willing to shell out money to key pieces of the team, under new owner Steve Cohen, after proving that they would be willing to make bold moves by trading for him earlier in the offseason. However, while Lindor’s extension signaled a positive starting point and a success, many fans believe that the work should not be finished yet, as Michael Conforto is in the final year of his contract and is set to become a free agent after the season, at a position with a fairly weak free agency class this year.
Immediately after acquiring Lindor and Carlos Carrasco in a trade with the Cleveland Indians that sent Amed Rosario, Andres Gimenez, Josh Wolfe and Isaiah Greene the other way, pressure mounted on Cohen to lock up Lindor to an extension. Many fans began to question whether or not this would happen when Lindor and the Mets had substantial differences in what they wanted the deal to look like, but ultimately Lindor just wanted to exceed the total money made by Fernando Tatis Jr. in his 14-year extension worth $340 million, and a deal was able to get done in the final hours of Lindor’s self-imposed deadline.
Now with Lindor’s deal out of the way, Conforto is the Mets top priority, especially after failing to land George Springer in free agency this past offseason. New York was heavily linked to Springer, and many fans were content with missing out on him due to the acquisition of Lindor, and the belief that Conforto could be locked up long term. However, nothing is certain as Conforto acknowledged there is no guarantee the Mets look the way they are currently constructed in a few years. “But aside from that, I can’t really speak to whether or not they can pay all those guys, or what our capacity is to keep everybody,” Conforto said to SNY.
While Cohen is a very wealthy owner, and has already shown much more willingness than the previous owners, Fred and Jeff Wilpon, he has expressed that while he is willing to spend, at least early on, he’d prefer to not go above the luxury tax threshold. “I’ve said we are a major-market team and we should spend like we are a major-market team, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to spend like drunken sailors,” Cohen said.
Enter Michael Conforto who is a Scott Boras client. Boras has shown a tendency to take his clients to free agency, looking to command top dollar in long term deals. However, that is not to say he will not sign extensions, as Boras is working for his clients so if they express a desire to stay, he has shown that he is willing to talk extensions, which Conforto has said he would be open to. One Boras client who did not reach free agency was Stephen Strasburg, who expressed interest in remaining in Washington and agreed to a seven-year extension worth $175 million. If the price is right, Conforto and Boras are open to a deal, but are looking to strike a deal larger than the six-year, $150 million contract that George Springer and the Toronto Blue Jays agreed to this offseason. Conforto has stated his desire to focus on this season, but has not ruled out contract extension talks during the season like Lindor did, so there is a chance the Mets and Boras will be in talks throughout the season.
Conforto is coming off of a career year in the shortened 60 game season, where he hit .322, with a .412 On Base Percentage, which were both career-highs. The true question for Cohen and the Mets is if last seasons results were merely a fluke as a result of the pandemic shortened season, or if they were a sign that he turned a corner, and this is the type of player he is now. Conforto has been a productive player for the Mets during his seven-year career, but last season elevated his play to that of a perennial All-Star and MVP candidate. Both versions are valuable to Cohen and the Mets but are worth very different prices. If Conforto can perform as he did last season, then he is well worth the long-term investment at top dollar, but the Mets may not be so sure of that yet.
It remains to be seen if Conforto and the Mets can agree to a long-term deal, but either way he will serve as a key cog in a Mets team that has World Series aspirations this coming season. A strong season out of Conforto combined with a deep playoff run will go a long way to improving Conforto’s value in contract negotiations, while also making it more likely the Mets see him as an integral part of their roster for the foreseeable future.