The longer the offseason goes, the more confident I’ve been that Stephen Drew has a good chance of ending up on the Mets. It continually feels like the Mets are the one team continually talking to him, and the one that seemingly has serious interest and a clear need and place for Drew to play. On the other side, Drew seems to be hoping for something better than the Mets.
The Mets, and most other teams, report to spring training next weekend. Time is running out for Drew to join a team at the start of spring, and if there was another team serious about giving him a better offer than the ones the Mets are hinting at, it would’ve come by now. Barring a crazy injury to a team that’s set at the position, it seems like Drew isn’t get that higher offer.
The most recent news is that Drew, and agent Scott Boras, are asking for an opt-out in the contract. That sounds an awful lot like negotiation. There are various reasons why the Mets should or should not be willing to offer an opt-out, but choosing to do so or coming back with a different option is also just negotiation. Would Drew be bargaining further with the Mets if he had other interest, or would he be trying to hold firm and let the teams interested woo him?
My guess is that Stephen Drew will agree to terms with the Mets after another round or two of back and forth. I’m going to guess he’ll be a Met before the next snowstorm Wednesday night finishes blanketing New York with very un-baseball like weather.
