MLB Rumors: Michael Conforto Could Still Resurface This Season

He's the long-lost and forgotten free agent from the past offseason. The former New York Mets All-Star outfielder Michael Conforto is still unsigned. His market cratered due to an offseason injury. 

But is his season really over? Maybe not, according to MLB Insider Jon Heyman: "Word is Michael Conforto has a good chance to sign with someone to be a hitter, perhaps for September."

The injury he suffered back in January was to his throwing shoulder, making his participation as an outfielder still tricky. Thus, using him as a DH would be the only way he'd be of value at this point. 

Most importantly, Heyman notes, is that if he is going to sign, it would happen after Tuesday, when the MLB Draft concludes. Conforto's free agency came attached with losing a draft pick for signing him, because the Mets gave him the qualifying offer after last season.

Michael Conforto, in a few hours, will officially go through the draft unsigned and the compensation will be removed from his free agency. Truly a stunning turn of events.

— Jack Ramsey (@jackwramsey) July 17, 2022

Conforto and his agent Scott Boras were expecting a huge $100M payday in free agency, but they decided to wait until after the lockout, to try to drive the price up. Then he suffered the injury, ultimately leading to his being, essentially, locked-out of the 2022 season himself, at least to this point. Boras now says there are some "very good teams" showing interest in Conforto. 

The 29-year-old is a seven-year veteran, with career marks of a .255 average and .824 OPS. He'd spent his entire career with the Mets. 

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