The Mets will have a familiar face returning to first base on a part-time basis next season, and it won’t be Carlos Delgado.
Fernando Tatis agreed to a one-year deal with the team yesterday, according to an industry source, giving the Mets a tandem of Daniel Murphy and Tatis at first base heading into spring training.
The deal won’t be official until Tatis passes a physical. The Post first reported on Wednesday that the two sides were close to a deal.
Tatis’ addition all but closes the door on Delgado returning to the team. The Mets scouted Delgado in the Puerto Rican winter league, but didn’t see enough to convince them he could handle first base on even a part-time basis after undergoing season-ending hip surgery in May.
Tatis, 35, agreed to a deal that will pay him less than the $1.7 million he earned last year with the Mets, but the contract includes bonuses that could put him closer to that figure.
The Rockies and Mariners had also shown interest in Tatis, who recently entertained an offer from the Indians because he was intrigued by the idea of playing for manager Manny Acta, a friend from the Dominican Republic.
But Tatis also is close to Mets general manager Omar Minaya. It was Minaya, then a scout with the Rangers, who signed Tatis to his first professional contract in 1992. The two were later reunited with the Expos. Minaya signed Tatis to a minor-league deal with the Mets in 2007.
Tatis hit .282 with eight homers and 48 RBIs last season as a part-time player. He also can give the Mets an occasional turn in left field or at third base.
With prospect Ike Davis likely a year away from joining the major-league club, the Mets will keep their fingers crossed that Murphy and Tatis can produce at first base.