NEW YORK -- Outside of general manager Omar Minaya's innermost circle last offseason, the Mets weren't considered players in the Johan Santana trade talks until well into 2008. The Yankees and Red Sox were offering more than their rivals seemed able to match, and so the Mets -- despite their cries to the contrary -- remained mostly forgotten in the chase for Santana.

Perhaps such strategy might work again this offseason in the pursuit of free-agent starter Derek Lowe. The Mets are one of only a few teams which seem capable of affording Lowe, whose agent, Scott Boras, originally asked for a long-term contract of about $18 million per year. And though the Mets have made it known that they're comfortable pursuing lower-profile starters this offseason, it's possible that Lowe might yet fall into their laps.

If nothing else, it's an avenue that the Mets are pursuing. A Tuesday report on Yahoo! Sports stated that the Mets are "deep in negotiations" with Lowe and that he has become their "prime target," though an official offer has yet to be made.

On Wednesday, the Boston Globe cited a baseball source in a report that said the Mets would offer a four-year deal, or "three years with a vesting option." The estimated value would be $14-16 million per season.

On Thursday, the New York Daily News cited a baseball official familiar to the Mets' thinking who said that contrary to some reports, a deal with Lowe is not yet imminent, but that negotiations could make further headway in the next week.

Minaya confirmed that sentiment to New York Newsday, saying: "We're talking, we're having discussions, but nothing's going to happen in the next day or two."

It's progress, if only of the most tenuous variety.

"It's fair to say he's a very good pitcher," Minaya said last week. "He's got a very good agent. Right now, what we're going to do is put him on the board and continue to have dialogue with the agent."

Their primary competition may come from the Red Sox, Lowe's old employer. Having lost out on the sweepstakes for free-agent first baseman Mark Teixeira, the Sox will have some extra money to spend on a starter -- should they choose to do so. And now that CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett are both off the market, Lowe is almost unquestionably the top remaining starter.

He's the type of pitcher that Minaya has said he's only willing to pursue to a certain extent, considering that his Mets have already spent plenty to revamp their bullpen this offseason, and considering that they see Santana, Mike Pelfrey and John Maine as the top three starters in their rotation. They would be satisfied to acquire a lesser starter, and have been linked to Oliver Perez, Randy Wolf and Tim Redding in recent weeks.

Yet it's little secret that the Mets will continue sniffing around Lowe in hopes that his cost might drop, just as Santana's did on the trade market a year ago.

"A lot of it is where the prices are," Minaya said. "Some guys may be in areas we choose not to go in. Sometimes, those change."