Here’s the actual situation with the Mets and George Springer

Did anyone else get Twitter messages on Christmas that the Mets were close to signing George Springer?

Well, we have bad news for fans who might have gotten excited: It wasn’t real. Like, not at all.

Here’s the actual situation, according to league sources. The Mets and Blue Jays remain seriously interested in Springer and engaged with his representatives. As you almost certainly know.

What you might not know yet is that the Mets and Springer are still a good distance apart on value. All parties involved with Springer are bracing for the possibility that his free agency could stretch well into next month.

The rumored deal between Springer and the Mets that popped up in several places over the holiday was five years, $125 million. In reality, Springer is expected to sign for much more than that. Two league sources said that he was still asking for well over $150 million. Springer’s representatives at Excel Sports Management did not respond to messages seeking comment.

The Mets might be willing to approach $150 million for Springer, but the sides haven’t found sufficient common ground to even get near a deal.

As SNY reported earlier in the offseason, Springer is a more likely target for the Mets than free agent starter Trevor Bauer. There has been no evidence of a serious pursuit of Bauer to date.

Another legitimate option for the Mets is to sign neither of those players and spread their money around on free agents like Liam Hendriks and Jake Odorizzi in addition to the already-signed Trevor May and James McCann.