NASHVILLE, Tenn. — In a market flooded with proven pitching options there are multiple methods that will work for the Mets in constructing a starting rotation.
The most obvious is to sign an ace of Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s or Blake Snell’s caliber and then filling in behind one. But if that plan doesn’t materialize, then what?
“I don’t think we’re setting any definitive number of pitchers we need or anything like that and I don’t necessarily think that has to be the frontline guy,” president of baseball operations David Stearns said Tuesday at the winter meetings.
“It is wonderful to have horses at the top of your rotation, it certainly makes constructing the rest of the staff maybe a little bit easier, but it’s not the only way to construct a pitching staff. I do think you can put together a very competitive and solid pitching staff in a variety of different ways.”
Whether that is the first hint the Mets have doubts about adding a stud to lead the rotation or just posturing by Stearns ahead of an in-person powwow with Yamamoto after the winter meetings remains to be seen.
As it stands the Mets have Kodai Senga, Jose Quintana and Luis Severino for next season’s rotation. Multiple additions appear necessary, but the caliber and number could hinge largely on where Yamamoto lands (the Yankees, among others, are also in pursuit) and whether the organization views Snell as the answer as Plan B.
The next wave includes names such as Jordan Montgomery, Eduardo Rodriguez and Japanese left-hander Shota Imanaga.
“We know we need to add to our starting pitching,” Stearns said. “I am confident we will be able to do that. It’s probably a little too early for me to predict what echelon it is.”
The Mets pursued potential back-end rotation help in Erick Fedde, who spent last season pitching for the NC Dinos of the Korean Baseball Organization, winning the league’s MVP award. But Fedde reached agreement with the White Sox on Tuesday, according to The Post’s Jon Heyman.
Stearns’ wish list could also potentially include a swingman that would jump between the rotation and bullpen, allowing the Mets to insert a sixth starter as needed.
“I think when you have someone who can consistently give you multiple innings out of the pen or step in for a spot start, it does take some pressure off the rest of the staff,” Stearns said. “I would imagine that is something we’ll have to seek to have on our roster at various points in the season.”
Stearns also has holes to fill within the bullpen, where Edwin Diaz, Brooks Raley and Drew Smith are the only returning relievers with significant major league experience.
The Mets have previously considered Tylor Megill for the bullpen — testing him in that role late in the 2022 season — but Stearns isn’t in a hurry to remove the right-hander from the team’s starting pitching depth.
“I think it’s a really big arm and I would like to continue exploring him as a starter,” Stearns said. “Starting pitching is really tough to find and I think this guy has a chance to do it and he’s demonstrated for various portions of his career that he can do it so we would like to continue exploring it.”
Stearns said he isn’t seeking velocity for a bullpen that largely lacked it last season in Diaz’s absence as he rehabbed from knee surgery as much as a diversity of looks from his relievers.
“Velocity is a part of that,” Stearns said. “Velocity is not the entire package there … there are plenty of guys throwing in the 80s doing a good job out of bullpens these days.”