The Mets are in a unique position this offseason to reshape the look and feel of their team as new GM Billy Eppler gets to work under eager owner Steve Cohen, whose resources should help New York compete at the top end of the market.

After listening to what team president Sandy Alderson said earlier this month at the GM Meetings, the expectation should be that much of what the Mets do this offseason will revolve around signing free agents.

To paraphrase Alderson, there are two commodities in baseball: players and money. The Mets have plenty of money, and are reluctant to part with key players at the moment.

Part of the Mets' reluctance is because their farm system is top-heavy. Another reason is that so many of their big league players are coming off down years that negatively impacted their value to other teams.

Still, the Mets have the ammunition to make a big trade if they so choose. And while they should be making certain prospects off limits (including Francisco Alvarez and Brett Baty), their unique position in the 2022 MLB Draft would help them quickly replenish the system in the event they moved some key pieces of it in a trade this offseason.

Of the players throughout the league who are expected to be on the trading block, there are some who are under team control for quite some time and would likely take an enormous haul to acquire.

There are others who are closer to free agency and/or are relatively expensive, potentially making the cost to acquire them more palatable for a Mets team that could approach the market tentatively.

Here are five players, with varying expected acquisition costs, who could interest the Mets this offseason...

RHP Luis Castillo, Cincinnati Reds

The Mets' main need this offseason, even before Noah Syndergaard jilted them to join the Los Angeles Angels, was starting pitching.

There is plenty of it on the free agent market, but beyond Max Scherzer -- who might not have any interest in signing with a New York team -- there probably isn't any pitcher out there aside from perhaps Robbie Ray who has the upside of Castillo.

Castillo, who turns 29 in December, has yet to put it all together. But when you combine his career numbers (3.72 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 9.8 K/9 over five seasons) with his electric fastball/changeup/slider arsenal, you get a pitcher who would be a terrific fit near the top of the Mets' rotation.

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