The Morning Report 1.13.2015 | Pressure is now on Wright to Perform, Mets Re-Sign Keith Hernandez, Parra Signs with Rockies; Potential Trade Looming?

James Newman | Mets360- Without signing Yoenis Cespedes, the lineup for the Mets will put a lot of confidence in David Wright to make up for the loss of Cespedes. Unfortunately, the captain has been injured over the past couple of years, and has played in over 120 games two times in the past five years. The last time Wright had over a 2.0 WAR was in 2013, when he made the All-Star Game. In 112 games, Wright hit .307, with 18 homers and 58 RBIs. With only Duda, Granderson, and Walker having [potential to] hit more than 20 home runs a season, the Mets may need a little bit more production from Wright if they are going to compete for the division title again.

(Chris Soto: I don't see how you can realistically place any hopes of a good offense on the shoulders of an aging David Wright. His back condition has sapped him of whatever HR power he had left. I believe that the David Wright we saw in the 30 games he played in August/September is going to be the new norm for him.....which is ok. That David Wright still OPS'd .814 which would have been 7th best in the MLB at the 3B position had he played enough games. Wright is no longer a reasonable #3 or a #4 hitter in any line-up.....however.....he can still be a VERY strong #2 hitter behind Curtis Granderson.)



Mike Puma | New York Post- One big free agent is returning to the Mets. Keith Hernandez, whose SNY contract was set to expire, has a new deal that will keep him in the Mets broadcast booth at least through the 2018 season. But an industry source indicated Hernandez’s new contract may extend even longer than the previous three-year deals he had received from the network. The former first baseman has teamed with Ron Darling and Gary Cohen to form one of the game’s most popular and colorful broadcast crews. Hernandez will receive a substantial raise in his new contract, according to a source. SNY wasn’t about to risk losing the popular Hernandez, who has become an iconic presence in the booth.

(Chris Soto: I have the premium SiriusXM and DirectTV packages, in my car and at home, which can get all of the home team broadcasts and let me tell you....I have listened to a wide variety of broadcasters and can realistically say that SNY has built one of, if not the best, away from the field broadcasting experience both on the radio AND on TV in the entire MLB. You just do not get bored listening to these guys. Replacing Keith, while still providing that same level of experience, would have been far too difficult to do so I am very glad they were able to come to a new agreement.)

HOT STOVE REPORT (courtesy of mlbtraderumor.com)

• The San Diego Padres are close to signing one of either SS Ian Desmond or SS Alexei Ramirez.
• The Colorado Rockies signed OF Gerardo Parra to a 3 yr/$27.5M deal ($9.16M per season). The consensus around the MLB is that with the signing, the Rockies could now be more aggressive in their desires to trade one of Corey Dickerson, Charlie Blackmon, or Carlos Gonzalez for some SP.
• The Miami Marlins have signed LHSP Wei-Yin Chen to a 5 yr contract worth $80M. The contract is backloaded and has an opt-out clause after the second year. The value of the first two years is $14M per season with the remaining 3 being worth $17.33M per year.
• The Los Angeles Dodgers continue to dominate the international Free Agent market. This time they have signed 25 yr old Cuban RHP Yasiel Sierra to a 6 yr contract worth $30M. Sierra was not subject to the international bonus rules due to his age so the Dodgers will not have to pay a 100% tax of the contract value to the MLB like they did with youngster Yusniel Diaz.