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By Jon Vankin
Contributing Sports Writer
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The New York Mets made headlines with a couple of marquee offseason signings, namely Juan Soto and Pete Alonso. But another potentially important signing went under the radar when the club picked up former No. 4 overall draft pick Nick Madrigal on a one-year, $1.35 million contract.
After three seasons with the Chicago White Sox, the team that drafted him, and two with their crosstown rivals the Cubs, Madrigal saw his offensive numbers drop off precipitously, posting an anemic .535 OPS last season, down from just .663 in 2023. That led the Cubs to non-tender him, allowing Madrigal to become a free agent.
That's how the Mets were able to acquire him — but now Madrigal is gone for what the team describes as "a long time" after dislocating and, as an MRI revealed on Monday, fracturing his left (non-throwing) shoulder in a spring game against the Washington Nationals on Sunday.
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Madrigal has been placed on the 60-day injured list, leaving the Mets facing the possibility that they will break camp with no viable backup option to 10-year veteran shortstop Francisco Lindor.
But there is one shortstop still among the 65 unsigned free agents remaining on the market who would likely come as inexpensively as Madrigal, but already had one standout season with the Mets and made himself a fan favorite among the Flushing Meadows faithful.
That would be Jose Iglesias, a 12-year veteran of seven MLB teams who was first signed by the Boston Red Sox in 2009 after he defected from Cuba at age 18, slipping away from the Cuban national team during an amateur international tournament in Canada.
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That was in 2008. Iglesias, now 35, has had a long journey in baseball since then. He did not play at all in 2023 but resurfaced with the Mets in 2024 on a one-year, $1.5 million contract.
Iglesias not only went on to post the best offensive numbers of his career (outside of the truncated 2020 COVID season), with an .830 OPS and .337 batting average in 291 plate appearances, he also scored a No. 1 hit single on Billboard magazine's Latin music chart with his song "OMG," recorded under the stage name "Candelita."
The track quickly became the Mets' unofficial theme song and helped inspire the team on an improbable playoff run that took New York to the National League Championship Series before losing to the eventual World Series champs the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games.
"With Madrigal sidelined for the foreseeable future, the Mets' infield depth is already looking thinner than expected," wrote Empire Sports Media founder Alexander Wilson after Madrigal's injury. "Iglesias is the most logical solution. Given his age, he likely won't command a big contract, and he'd bring a veteran presence to the clubhouse."
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Jake Elman of Athlon Sports reached a similar conclusion in a piece published Monday as well.
"Iglesias still makes perfect sense for the Mets," Elman wrote. "He's a veteran bat familiar with playing in New York and a fan favorite. There's no risk in adding the 34-year-old on a one-year deal." (Iglesias actually turned 35 on Jan. 5.)
But Steve Adams of the MLB Trade Rumors podcast was somewhat more skeptical, saying on Wednesday's show that because Iglesias has no minor league options, he would make sense as a Mets signing only if he would agree to a minor league deal.
According to an estimate by Spotrac, Iglesias should command a $1.7 million, one-year deal. Will it happen? According to a report by Mets beat writer Tim Healey of Newsday, probably not. Even after the loss of Madrigal, the Mets see Iglesias as "not a fit" for the 2025 team, Healey reported.
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