Tuesday won’t be de-Day for Mets
Starting staff likely staying intact
Tuesday will not be “de-Day” that some think the Mets desperately needed. While publicly Mets’ assistant GM John Ricco, the spokesperson for the three-man GM panel, has said he would trade Jacob deGrom to a team that could “blow away” the Mets with a return packs, they have made it clear to teams who have approached them that they are not serious about trading their ace.
The Mets had entertained some talk about trading Noah Syndergaard before Tuesday’s 4 p.m. trade deadline, but then pulled that back after the big righthander spent most of the last two months on the disabled list. The Mets were talking to several teams last week about Zack Wheeler, but at least one executive familiar with some of the talks said the Mets were very “non-committal” about dealing him.
“It seems like they want to hold onto him and build around those four pitchers,” the executive said. “With deGrom, Syndergaard and Matz, so you can understand why they’d want to hold on to him.”
It is understandable for the Mets to let this trade deadline pass without moving one of their starters, only if they are committed to bigger changes down the road when they have their new GM and his plan for the future in place. I understand the reasons to wait; timing is unfortunately not on the Mets’ side.
With Sandy Alderson stepping down last month, the Mets’ future leadership is in flux. A three-man committee of J.P. Ricciardi, Omar Minaya and Ricco is acting as the GM as of now, but ownership has told people close to them that they will go outside of the organization to replace Alderson. While the three GMs have said they have the confidence of ownership to make big trades at the deadline, it’s hard to trade an asset like deGrom, Syndergaard or Wheeler without an idea of who will be making the plan for the future.
The timing is incredibly unfortunate for the Mets, because they need to change their approach going forward. They need to build a solid defense behind that pitching. They need to invest in a revamped bullpen. With a lineup built on power, they need to add more consistent bats and some speed.
OThat’s a long wish list for the Mets heading into the offseason free agency period, especially when you consider the questionable contracts they already have on the books for next season.
The Mets head into 2019 with $76 million in contracts committed to players who are currently on the disabled list.
They owe $29 million to Yoenis Cespedes, who is scheduled to have surgery on his feet, which has a rehab time of eight to 10 months, eating into his ability to play next season. David Wright, who has not played in a major league baseball game since May 2016 because of neck, spine and shoulder issues, is owed $15 million in 2019.
Jay Bruce, who has been battling a hip/lower back issue, is on the books for $14 million. Todd Frazier, who is playing in rehab games and expected back soon, is owed $9 million in 2019, as is Juan Lagares, who is out this year after season-ending toe surgery.
The Mets have their best opportunity to address some of those needs via trades right now. DeGrom is under control until 2020, meaning he could impact three straight pennant races.
The payoff on deals is always higher when a buying team is in the middle of a pennant race than in the winter for that reason.
As another executive described it earlier this month, the Mets were looking at a franchise-defining decision. A move to trade deGrom or Syndergaard could have brought back enough players to seed a future in a largely barren farm system. Even dealing Wheeler would be a jump-start on a rebuild. ne MLB executive called this an organizationdefining trade deadline for the Mets, whether they decide to trade deGrom or not, as it will impact their future for the next five years.
“They will define the next few years of their organization with the decision they make on deGrom,” the rival executive said. “Either way, that decision will determine where they go next.”
The decision on deGrom was made weeks ago, seemingly. By standing pat with all three pitchers, they are deciding to go into the future as, well, the same old Mets.