2:10pm: A source tells Newsday's Marc Carig Valverde is only on the Mets' radar if there's an injury in camp and a need arises.
1:25pm: The Mets expect Valverde to receive a big league deal somewhere else, tweets Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. If that doesn't happen, however, they may consider him later, but not so much now.
12:54pm: A team insider characterized the chances of the Mets signing Valverde as "really, really unlikely," according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.
9:27am: The Mets are leaving the door "slightly ajar" for free agent Jose Valverde to join the club as their closer, an industry source told Ken Davidoff of the New York Post. The source says that the Mets view Valverde, who turns 35 next month, as “a 5 out of 10.” However, as Davidoff notes, the Mets current bullpen isn't exactly filled with 8s and 9s.
Mets officials will assess the performances of their relievers in live action while continuing to collect information on Valverde. As it stands, Bobby Parnell is slotted in as the closer, with Brandon Lyon and Josh Edgin as the primary setup options.
It appeared that Valverde found a home earlier this month with the Marlins, but those reports proved to be untrue. Shortly thereafter, agent Scott Boras denied planting the story in order to drum up interest in his client. Valverde and Kyle Lohse are the two remaining members of MLBTR's Top 50 Free Agents list to be without a team.
Edward Creech contributed to this post.
