The Mets signed Nick Madrigal to a split contract yesterday, seemingly addressing the team’s desire to add an experienced utility infielder alongside the younger in-house infield options. The signing led to fresh questions about the status of last year’s veteran infield hand in Jose Iglesias, who remains unsigned in the wake of a magical season on and off the field in Queens.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post wrote yesterday that “the Mets haven’t yet strongly pursued” Iglesias to this point in the offseason. The Post’s Mike Puma added a bit more context to the situation, noting that the Mets may see Iglesias as slightly redundant within the team’s crowded infield depth chart, even though “Iglesias hasn’t been ruled out” for a return.
Iglesias signed a minor league contract with New York last offseason, and that contract was selected to the active roster on May 31, when the Mets also optioned Brett Baty down to Triple-A amidst a flurry of other roster moves. Known more for his glove than his bat over his long career, Iglesias improbably delivered the best offensive performance of his 12 MLB seasons, hitting .337/.381/.448 with four homers (for a 137 wRC+) over 291 plate appearances. His arrival on the roster almost exactly coincided with the Mets’ turnaround, as the team had a 23-33 record before Iglesias’ contract was selected and then a 66-40 record afterwards. If that wasn’t enough, Iglesias even recorded the pop song “OMG,” which became the Mets’ anthem and unofficial rallying cry for the 2024 season.
Despite all this success and Iglesias’ role as a clubhouse leader and fan favorite, it is understandable why the Mets haven’t been proactive in re-signing the 35-year-old. Iglesias’ offensive showing was heavily powered by a .382 BABIP, as he didn’t walk much or make hard contact. To Iglesias’ credit, his sprint speed helped him turn some of those grounders into base hits, and he kept a lot of balls in play by rarely striking out.
Still, it is safe to assume that the Mets might view Iglesias’ 2024 numbers as something of a fluke, so moving to the roster flexibility offered by Madrigal’s split contract could be the team’s preferred tactic. As Puma noted, New York might ideally prefer that any of its veteran infield options remain purely as depth, lest they block any playing time for Baty, Luisangel Acuna, Ronny Mauricio or others.