The New York Mets are on the verge of solidifying their rotation with one of the five best remaining free agents.

Mets surge near front of pack in race for Roki Sasaki

Mets Batflip relayed a report from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, which shed light on the franchise’s position in the race to land Japanese sensation Roki Sasaki:

“The Mets are ‘one of the obvious front runners’ for Roki Sasaki, per @Ken_Rosenthal on Foul Territory,” Mets Batflip shared on X on Friday afternoon.

This latest development is encouraging beyond face value for New York. All offseason long, the perceived favorites to land Sasaki have been the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, due to having players with compatriotic ties to Sasaki, their winning pedigrees, and desirable locales.

However, the Mets are now firmly in the mix. Mets owner Steve Cohen has done a commendable job in restructuring his team’s roster last fall and this winter. His notable acquisitions include superstar slugger Juan Soto, two-time All-Star Clay Holmes, and standout starting pitcher Sean Manaea, the latter of whom was brought back to New York on a three-year, $75 million deal.

Mets can boost World Series odds with Sasaki signing

The Mets advanced to the National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers last season. With Soto at the forefront and a revamped pitching unit, the ball club can make another push for a World Series crown in 2025.

This winning culture and elite roster, coupled with the franchise’s big market and favorable environment, check many of the boxes that Sasaki is valuing in his deliberation process. Also, seeing that teams can only spend their international bonus pool money on him, the Mets, who currently have a payroll table of $235.52 million for next season and a projected allocation of $262.84 million by Spotrac, could add a top-of-the-line starter to their already formidable ensemble and pack a harder punch next season.