Mets bolstering bench depth with Tommy Pham

Tommy Pham is joining the Mets. Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Mets bolstering bench depth with fantasy football fighter Tommy Pham

By Zak Musso | Last updated 1/18/23

The New York Mets are finalizing a one-year, $6 million deal with veteran outfielder Tommy Pham, according to SNY's Andy Martino. Per ESPN's Buster Olney, Pham has a chance to make an additional $2 million in incentives.

You can't mention Pham without talking about a strange incident he was involved in last season. Major League Baseball suspended him for three games for slapping Giants outfielder Joc Pederson over a fantasy football dispute.

"I don't feel sorry for what I did," Pham said, per ESPN. He also criticized the commissioner of that fantasy league, Angels star Mike Trout, for apparently allowing Pederson to skate the rules. Pham was playing for the Reds at the time.

Pham is the 10th free agent signed by the Mets this offseason, tying the 2006-07 and 2020-21 offseasons for most signings in team history.

With Pham's signing, the Mets' offseason signing total will be $500 million, the second-most in the MLB, trailing only the New York Yankees, per Spotrac.

Over the course of nine major league seasons, Pham has played for the Cardinals, Red Sox, Rays, Padres and Reds. The veteran outfielder has played in 876 games, hitting 114 home runs with a career batting average of .259.

Pham will fill two roles for the Mets: fourth outfielder and right-handed designated hitter.

The Mets have been chasing after a fourth outfielder to back up Mark Canha, Starling Marte and Brandon Nimmo since the offseason began. Pham has experience playing all three outfield positions, making him an ideal target for the Mets.

Pham will likely platoon with Daniel Vogelbach at DH, starting on days the Mets face left-handed pitching. This could spell the end of the road for Darin Ruf, the horrible right-handed designated hitter.

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