GM Billy Eppler hesitant to shed light on the pitfalls of Carlos Correa-Mets fiasco

New York Mets General Manager Billy Eppler was reluctant to speak about the intricacies of the failed Carlos Correa deal during a Zoom call with reporters.

When quizzed about why the Carlos deal fell through, he stated that he didn't want to go into the finer details for privacy reasons and out of respect for Carlos.

"Billy Eppler refrains from going into any detail on what happened with Carlos Correa: "Out of privacy reasons, as well as out of respect to Carlos" - SNY, Twitter

Correa agreed to a $315m, 12-year deal with the Mets in December last year. The Mets had concerns about his ankle after a 22 December physical and held off finalizing the agreement while attempting to negotiate protections.

"Carlos Correa's offseason: Oct. 13: Correa opts out of Twins contract. Dec. 13: Giants sign 13-year, $350M deal. Dec. 21: Giants postpone deal with concerns over physical; Mets sign 12-year, $315M deal. Dec. 24: Mets concerned with physical. Jan. 10: Twins sign 6-year, $200M deal. The deal never fell through after that!" - FOX Sports: MLB, Twitter

Despite losing out on Carlos, Eppler firmly believes that the Mets have a strong and deep lineup, capable of scoring runs and scoring big. He did maintain, however, that the Mets are always looking for better and that they are always in the market prowling for talent.

“I think we have a strong and deep lineup and I am confident in our group’s ability to score runs, but … you can always be better,” he said.

“You have to look for opportunities out there and sometimes certain markets are a little bit quieter at certain times of the year, but you are always looking to get better. I do think we have a strong lineup as currently configured, but we can always be better.”

The Mets are looking confident this season, and it will be interesting to see just how far they go.

Billy Eppler is still interested in adding an outfielder this offseason

The Mets may already possess what Eppler calls “a strong and deep lineup,” but there is no denying that he's still on the lookout for an outfielder in the market.

“I’m still engaged in the market, talking to representation in both spaces -- both in the outfield and the bullpen. Whether anything actually comes to fruition … remains to be seen. But definitely still having the conversations,” Eppler said.

Veterans such as Jurickson Profar and Adam Duvall would definitely fill those roles up quite efficiently, but none of the likes of Correa.