Mets tender contracts to all of their arbitration eligible players

The non-tender deadline came and went at 8:00 pm yesterday and while a number of players around the league were cut loose into the free agent pool by their former teams, none of those players were Mets. The Mets officially announced that they had tendered contracts to everyone on their 40-man roster, a move that had been fully expected leading up to the deadline. The Mets 40-man roster currently stands at 39.

Of the Mets players who appeared at risk of getting non-tendered, Matt Harvey garnered the most attention due to the combination of his rising salary and struggles on the mound the past two years. The former ace fought both his command and velocity in his return from Thoracic Outlet Sydrome surgery and posted a 6.70 ERA in 18 starts, one of the highest in the majors. Despite those issues, the pitcher once known as The Dark Knight still represents a potential bargain should he turn things around –– Harvey made $5.1 million in 2017 and is only projected for a slight bump in salary to $5.85 million in what will be his final season of arbitration.

Despite their struggles on the mound this year, Zack Wheeler and Hansel Robles will also be back. Both pitchers are arbitration eligible but given the quality of their stuff and the fact that they still project to be relatively inexpensive next season, the Mets will roll the dice in the hopes that Mickey Callaway and Dave Eiland can get their careers back on track. Wheeler returned from a two-year hiatus after Tommy John surgery and made just $800,000 this past season. He’ll be eligible for arbitration for the second time in his career, while Robles will be first time arbitration eligible this winter after making the league minimum last season.

Some of the more interesting names who became free agents last night include Braves 1B Matt Adams, former Cubs closer Hector Rondon, Astros SP Mike Fiers, Mariners SP Drew Smyly, and Brewers RP Jared Hughes.