If they signed Bourn, a speedy 30-year-old center fielder, the Mets would be forced to give up the 11th overall pick of the draft as compensation.
During an interview Sunday with MLB Network Radio, Alderson said the Mets had been “very reluctant to consider that,” as it would undermine their vision for the future.
He added, “The blueprint here is to rebuild the farm system at the same time that we try to be competitive and for us to lose a first-round pick would be counter to that approach.”
The top 10 picks of the draft are protected, and the Mets were originally supposed to have the 10th overall pick this year. But they were bumped down a spot when the Pittsburgh Pirates failed last year to sign their top draft selection. So they would appear to have at least some argument that their pick should be protected.
“Obviously we want to have some sense of which way that interpretation would go before we made any final decision but at this point it’s all speculation,” Alderson said.
Alderson said the Mets would continue their search for outfielders, through the free-agent market or by trade, but he did not sound optimistic about acquiring a significant talent.
“We continue to look but I think, realistically at this point, there’s not a lot left on the shelf,” Alderson said. “So at some point we have to realize that, well, perhaps the outfield is not the strength of our team.”
