Anticipation is high as the MLB Winter Meetings loom around the corner. Philadelphia Phillies fans are waiting anxiously for the news to drop of Kyle Schwarber's next contract, hoping that all the experts are correct and that the slugger will return to the City of Brotherly Love. New suitors seem to be emerging for Schwarber on a seemingly weekly basis, however, and the latest team to join the sweepstakes would be Phillies fans' worst nightmare.
Enter the New York Mets.
The hated NL East rival is reportedly now in the mix to sign Schwarber, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. In a post on Threads on Monday, the respected MLB insider noted that Schwarber will get years and a high annual salary. He also included the Mets in the list of teams in the mix, along with the Boston Red Sox, Cincinnati Reds, and others.
"Schwarber’s market is healthy," Passan posted. "He’s going to get years, and he’s going to get AAV ... The Phillies remain the favorite, with Boston, Cincinnati, the Mets and others in the mix."
The "others" include at least the Baltimore Orioles and the Pittsburgh Pirates, who have also been rumored to be in the hunt, surprisingly. No other team would create quite the same catastrophe that the Mets could, though.
Kyle Schwarber signing with the Mets would be Phillies fans' deepest, darkest nightmare
Re-signing the designated hitter has been at the top of the Phillies' to-do list all offseason, but obviously they're not alone. Hitting 187 home runs over the past four seasons, the second-most in the majors, will tend to entice teams hungry for a difference-making bat.
After a brutal second-half nosedive to miss the playoffs this season, the Mets are shaking things up big time. They've already traded homegrown fan favorite Brandon Nimmo for Marcus Semien. Slugger Pete Alonso is still on the free agent market, as is Starling Marte, opening up the Mets' DH spot. They also just signed Devin Williams for three seasons.
Seeing Schwarber sign with any other team would hurt Phillies fans, no doubt. But seeing him sign with the Mets? That would be soul-crushing. Even though the rivalry isn't the same and current-day players don't hold the same grudges that the 2000s Phillies players once did, we fans still can't stand the Mets.
Not only would he be crossing into enemy territory as a Met, but Schwarber would also line up to face the Phillies 13 times every season. Ugh.
Despite turning 33 before next season, Schwarber is expected to get five years and $30 million per season, or higher. Who can afford that? Mets owner Steve Cohen certainly can, even if he has to surrender multiple draft picks and $1 million in international bonus pool money.
The Phillies desperately need to bring back Schwarber. Even though MLB.com's Todd Zolecki's last update was that the two sides aren't close, things can change quickly. After reports that the Phillies and Schwarber were not on the same timeline to get a deal done, many now expect Schwarber to have a new contract by the end of the Winter Meetings next week.
Hopefully it's with the Phillies. At the very least, it had better not be with the Mets.