Reasonable minds can disagree about whether Tim Tebow is worth the investment in time or money for the Mets.
He is a decided long shot — 29 years old and more than a decade removed from his last competitive baseball game. But he is also a terrifically gifted athlete used to pressure moments, and flashed what scouts generally thought was good power with a compact swing during a workout attended by the Royals and 27 other major-league clubs last month in California.
But here is something beyond debate: a competitive advantage is up for grabs to the team that best positions itself to develop the next Tim Tebow and what figures to be a growing number of athletes like him — naturally talented, and motivated to play baseball, either after not making it in football or being turned off from that sport’s growing health concerns.