The New York Mets have a major injury concern in their outfield that will also negatively impact their offense, but there is a player on the Seattle Mariners that could help alleviate this concern.
Mitch Haniger put together an incredible season for the Seattle Mariners last year as he earned his first All-Star appearance. Through 157 games, he compiled 68 XBHs, 90 Rs, and 93 RBI alongside a slash-line of .285/.366/.493.
His .859 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) was 10th in the entire MLB amongst qualifying outfielders. As Brandon Nimmo was sixth on this list with an .886 OPS, acquiring Haniger would give the Mets an incredible pair of outfielders.
Haniger is 27-years-old, but he has four years of team control remaining as he did not make his MLB debut until 2016. Although it may not make sense to move a player with this level of production and this amount of team control remaining, the Mariners have made it clear that they are looking to change course this offseason.
They proved this by moving a top of the rotation arm in James Paxton, despite having two more years of team control remaining. The Mariners could be looking to move Haniger while his value is extremely high as well.
As the Mariners are in a transition period, the Mets should make an aggressive attempt to acquire the right-handed slugger. Even though the Mets have Michael Conforto, Brandon Nimmo, and Jay Bruce already under contract for next season, Bruce can be moved to first base.
Moving Bruce to first base would also allow Wilmer Flores to be available to rotate between first base, second base, third base, and shortstop to give other players a day off. Even though the Mets expect Cespedes to return, Haniger has the ability to play all three outfield positions to further bolster the lineup.
Haniger would also make sense within the Mets payroll as he will not enter his pricey arbitration seasons until the contracts of Cespedes and Bruce expire. Due to this, it would greatly benefit the organization to acquire Haniger from the Mariners this offseason.