Mets avoid arbitration with five

The Mets have avoided arbitration with the following players: Ike Davis, Daniel Murphy, Bobby Parnell, Eric Young Jr., and Ruben Tejada. Two players, Dillon Gee and Lucas Duda, have yet to reach a settlement with the team. 

Tejada will earn $1.1 million in 2014, which is a slight salary raise from last year's campaign. Sandy Alderson has stated that Tejada may start the season as the team's regular shortstop, despite their reported interest in free agent Stephen Drew. 

The 24 year old infielder hit .202/.259/.260 in 57 games for the Mets in 2013. He was demoted to Triple-A Las Vegas early on in the season, and came back up in September, only to break his leg in a collision with outfielder Andrew Brown.

Davis and the Mets have agreed on a $3.5 million salary for 2014. The 26 year old slugger struggled mightily in 2013, as he hit .205/.326/.334 with only 9 home runs in 103 games. Like Tejada, he was also demoted to the minor leagues during the season. With the 51s, he managed to put up better numbers as he hit .293/.424/.667 in a brief 21 game stint.

The Mets have been shopping Davis all winter long, but haven't found an offer to their liking yet. Right now it appears that they are content with leaving him on the roster, and giving him the opportunity to be the star he was once sought out to become.

Eric Young Jr., acquired from Colorado in a mid-season waiver swap, hit .251 in 91 games with the Mets. He also had 38 stolen bases with New York, and a total of 46 swiped bags on the year, which led the National League. 

He will earn $1.85 million in 2014, but his role with next year's squad is still unknown. It's possible he could see time out in center field next year, giving Juan Lagares occasional days off, or even second base if need be.

Bobby Parnell has agreed to a $3.7 million settlement with an extra $50,000 bonus if he appears in 60 or more games. The 29 year old closer had a 2.16 ERA with 22 saves last year, but his season was cut short after he underwent surgery for a herniated disk in early September. 

Murphy had a solid 2013 season, as he hit .286 in 161 games for the team. He will earn $5.7 million next year, which is a salary raise of about $3 million. He can earn an extra $50,000 if he reaches 500 plate appearances. 

Mets invite 20 non-roster players to Spring Training

The Mets have invited 20 non-roster players to major league Spring Training. The list of players goes as follows:

RHP

Chase Bradford

Joel Carreno

John Church

Jeremy Hefner

Rafael Montero

Miguel Socolovich

Noah Syndergaard

Cory Mazzoni

Logan Verrett

LHP

Adam Kolarek

Jack Leathersich

Catchers

Taylor Teagarden

Kevin Plawecki

INF

Brandon Allen

Eric Campbell

Anthony Seratelli

Daniel Muno

OF

Dustin Lawley

Cory Vaughn

Brandon Nimmo

Mets sign Taylor Teagarden

The Mets have signed catcher Taylor Teagarden to a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training. His contract will be worth $750,000 if he reaches the big leagues. 

Also, he would receive a $25,000 bonus for each of 60 and 80 games spent on the roster, and he has a clause in his contract that allows him to opt out if he is not called up by June 15. 

Teagarden, a former third round pick, hit .167 in a brief stint with the Orioles last season. Over the course of his 6 year career, he has slugged 20 homers with 63 RBI in 163 total games.

He was designated for assignment by Baltimore on September 1st, but cleared waivers and was sent to Triple-A Norfolk.

Teagarden is simply a depth player, given that he provides what most fringe players would bring to the table. He is very similar to Anthony Recker in that he has some pop to his bat, but plays below-average defense and isn't cut out to be an everyday regular. 

Right now, the catching depth chart most likely goes as follows:

1. Travis d'Arnaud

2. Anthony Recker

3. Teagarden/Centeno

4. Teagarden/Centeno

Teagarden's only real shot at reaching the Major Leagues is if he battles out Anthony Recker in Spring Training, or if one of the top 2 catchers gets injured during the season.