Mets considering Kevin Kiermaier

Dec 6, 2022 - 6:47 PM

While the Mets main priority in the winter meetings remains pitching, pitching, and more pitching, the team still currently has a gaping hole in the outfield they must address with Brandon Nimmo reaching free agency. If Nimmo were to depart for another team, the backup options for the Mets are sparse, but one option they are reportedly considering is Kevin Kiermaier.

The 32-year-old has been with Tampa Bay since he came up in 2013, and has spent years entrenched as their starting center fielder. With his elite center field defense, Kiermaier looked like a rising star in the mid-2010s and signed an 6-year, $53 million extension in 2017, making him one of the few players the Rays have committed to long-term. Unfortunately, numerous injuries and poor offensive numbers have side tracked Kiermaier’s career. He hasn’t playing in 130 games since 2015, and only has one season where he posted a wRC+ above 100 since 2017.

Coming off a season where he hit .222/.281/.369 in just 63 games, Kiermaier does not sufficiently replace Nimmo’s offensive value. He does still play a great center field, but the former Gold Glover may not be able to keep that up that elite defense as he approaches his mid-30s.