Worth noting

• Free agent right-hander Bronson Arroyo said on WFAN that the Mets are not among a sizable group of teams already contacting him to negotiate. It was widely assumed heading into the offseason that the Mets would court Arroyo, who went 14-12 with a 3.79 ERA in 32 starts for the Reds last season, eclipsing 200 innings for the eighth time in nine years.

• Second baseman Daniel Murphy will play Santa at the Mets' annual holiday party on Dec. 17, taking over a role that is purportedly cursed. Over the past decade, R.A. Dickey, David Wright, John Maine, Kris Benson and Mike Cameron were all either traded or seriously injured within months of suiting up as St. Nick.