MLB Free Agency: Breaking Down the Qualifying Offer Decisions

2B Neil Walker (New York Mets)

Did he receive a QO: YES

Should he have received a QO: YES

Once a golden boy and hometown hero of the Pittsburgh Pirates, the 31-year-old second baseman was dealt to the New York Mets in exchange for starting pitcher Jon Niese… Yeah, that was a clear win for the team from Queens.

Jon Niese jokes aside, Walker had a real nice season for the 2015 National League champs. Known for his above average power for his position, Walker produced as well as the Mets could have hoped for when they acquired him last offseason.

in 113 games with the team, the veteran infielder hit for an impressive .282 average while getting on-base at a .347 clip. Walker also added 23 home runs, which tied his career-high for a season in only just about three-quarters of the regular season.

Not everything went well for the second baseman in 2016 as he season was cut short after he had to undergo season-ending back surgery. His recovery is reportedly going well and he does expect to be back for Opening Day in 2017.

Just based on the numbers alone, it would be obvious for the Mets to extend Walker a qualifying offer, however the injury complicates things. The question remains to what degree? Being that there is a noticeable lack of offensive talent in the infield in free agency, one could assume that his market would be pretty robust. But the injury still clouds over the 31-year-old, which could force teams to steer clear of giving him any big money this go around.

There is no doubt that Walker is an offensive talent and represents one of the better offensive options at second base in the entire MLB. But the injury will force him and his agent to think long and hard about his free agency prospects given that his market will also assuredly strink because he has draft pick compensation attached. This leads me to conclude that in the end he will accept the offer and try to repeat his 2016 numbers next season.

Will he accept the QO: YES