Good morning.
Here’s today’s question -
Here's a simple question with a possible
complicated answer...
We all know that Yoenes Cespedes is playing every day with a bum leg.
We also know that the Mets are reported
to have thrown in the towel and are now on the phones wheeling and dealing
their expiring contracts.
Question: Wouldn't this be a good time to shut down,
for a while, Cespedes, put him on the DL and call up a possible trade chip like
Victor Cruzado?
Reese Kaplan says –
Right
now, it's time to showcase the possible trade candidates. That means you need Jay
Bruce and Curtis Granderson to play as
much as possible. With Michael Conforto coming back with a good series,
there's ample opportunity to rest Yoenis Cespedes without
trying to shoehorn Victor Cruzado into the
lineup. I'm not quite sure what the
fascination with him is. Brandon Nimmo who is a polarizing figure among fans –
a future player, a bust of a draft pick or somewhere in between -- actually has
more impressive numbers than does Cruzado and he got a late start playing
organized baseball.
Tom Brennan said –
In
full respect to Hobie, it is too soon to call up Cruzado. Why they played him sparingly in AAA earlier this
year is beyond me. Another 100 at bats early in the season would've been
extremely helpful.
Cespedes is
hitting, with a slug % over .600. Play
him carefully. But play him. Sit Wright instead...oh yeah, he already is
sitting.
I
would not pass up trades if the right
ones were to materialize. But, just like the Mets have endured numerous
injuries, it could be the nationals' turn next. So, it just seems a bit
premature to throw in the towel altogether.
Michael Maar said -
At
this point at the end of June, even though I agree it's appropriate for the
Mets to put the "open for business" shingle out there, I don't think
it's yet time to actually act on player moves that would constitute throwing in
the towel. Just start the conversations
with other GMs, but don't yet shut the door on that once-in-every-decade
miraculous run. There's still good
talent on the roster. Don't pack it in
yet and make a move like shutting down Cespedes or acting on any trades until
we get to the second half of July in the same or worse situation in the
standings.
Richard Herr said –
There's
several issues involved here. Let's handle them one at a time.
The
Mets should be talking to everyone about trading for their expiring
contracts. Expiring contracts, as in the
older players who are going to walk after this year. They should be talking about Grandy, Bruce,
Duda, Walker, Cabrera, Reyes, Salas, etc.
The trades should happen ASAP so we can sooner bring in the players we
get from the other teams. However, I don't think that will happen. Sandy has a
history of waiting-to-blink standoffs with other GMs to try to get the best
value.
Other
people, like Cruzado, are in a different category i.e. possible trading
chip. We should also explore those. They include Cecchini, Nimmo, Lagares, TJ
Rivera, Flores, Plawecki, d'Arnaud, etc. These are guys we want to plain, old
trade; move them to get a piece of equal value that better fills a need on the
ballclub.
Then
we come to the issue of Cespedes' injury. Obviously he's still injured. None of
us knows what the doctors' report is on his injury, but it appears we're in a
very screwed up situation here. We also don't know what management's plan is,
but I think management may be of the same mind. I think, since we're throwing
in the towel on this season, send Cespedes off to properly heal with the
knowledge that he's not going to do some more dumb-assed training that goes
against the requirements of his occupation.
LOCK
ON THE MONTH BET. Cabrera won't be traded in June. It will only be some time
after his July 1 doll promotion night. (I'm writing this on the 26th, and I
think it'll be posted on the 30th. However, I'm sure Mack will pass this hot
tip on to all of his wagering friends.)
David Rubin says –
I think that this is a much more complicated issue
then it first appears to be.
In
a "perfect" world, Cespedes would be riding the pine, healing,
rehabbing, and working on strengthening his legs so that he doesn't have
additional recurrences of the same injuries (and, by "strengthening"
I do NOT mean going back to Barwis' methods) and come back when, and ONLY when,
he is really feeling close to 100%. That, in and of itself, isn't realistic
because over a 162 game, 7 month season (not including Spring Training nor
play-offs) the body is going to feel less than 100% more than half the time. A
baseball season is not one of homeostasis; injuries occur, major and minor, all
throughout the season, enhanced and accelerated by things like travel, sleeping
in various beds, diet changes and issues, daily wear and tear and emotional
issues caused by both the length of the season as well as being away from the
comforts and regularity of home. So what IS "normal" for Cespedes?
Does he know what that feels like, as he's had minor injuries repeatedly throughout
his major league career so far? He seems like he always wants to be on the
field, and that's to be admired, but the team doesn't need "heroes" -
it needs players who can stay on the field as regularly as possible, or, in
essence, it needs to attempt to work towards the aforementioned homeostasis
that will never arrive.
The
second component to this question is what any extended absence means to the
financial well-being of the organization. I know that i feel 1000% better, as a
fan, when Cespedes is in the line-up, whether we are 10 games back or 1 game
back. He's exciting, he's a
game-changer, and since he came up with the A's I was raving and ranting as to
why a team in New York couldn't "afford" to bring in a talent like
him as opposed to the stadium-imposed small market status of the team in
Oakland!!!!! When we acquired Cespedes, I reluctantly purchased 2 t-shirts but
wouldn't commit to a jersey, as my "retired players pile" of t-shirts
and jerseys lately seems to outweigh my current pile. This off-season, I broke
down and finally got his jersey, more t-shirts, and have since purchased 3
bobbleheads. What does this mean to the Wilpons??? MONEY - MONEY -
MONEY!!!!!!!! With Noah "Thor" Syndergaard out for the majority of
the season, the Mets' other main source of merchandising income, things like
attendance (home and road) and merchandise sales tend to trend down drastically
when stars aren't playing. I was recently at an Angels game, a give-away,
"Christmas in June," and on a Friday night the stadium had maybe
28,000 fans in attendance (far less than the announced crowd of 38.000+.) At
most Angels games I've been to (about 20 per year) Trout merchandise FLIES out
of the 2 gift shops and the various portable stands. There are usually lines
full of fans waiting to lay down some cash for Mike's t-shirts, hats, jerseys,
bobbleheads, etc...and yet, on this Friday summer night, there were no
merchandise lines and the fans stayed away due to Trout's injury. I can
GUARANTEE you that, had he been playing, there would've been another 10,000
people in the stands, at the very least, and those stores would have needed
restocking ASAP!
Considering
the self-imposed financial situation the Wilponzi's have created, losing
Cespedes' from the line-up for any reason means less $$$$$$$$$ in their pockets
and at this point in time, coming off of 2 very relevant seasons, it's
something that they just cannot come back from readily. This offseason there
will be 7 players and over $60 million coming off the books; it would be nice
(trying not to veer too much into fantasy-land here) for the team to put at
LEAST that much back into the team, but with a sparse free agent market until
after the 2018 season, we know it's not going to happen. Therefore, maximizing
their revenue every game has to remain their number one priority and that means
playing Cespedes, even at a health level of 80% would be, from THEIR
standpoint, the way they want to move forward.
Look-
I have been a RAVING METS FAN for nearly 50 years- I am going to follow this
team religiously come heck and high water, happy, sad, mad or emotionally
devastated. The difference between what I WANT (a fully healthy Cespedes, even
though it's very hard to watch without him in the line-up) versus what the
Wilpons want (Cespedes and all stars in there each and every day) is that I am
not directly paying their bills, even though my merchandise and ticket
purchases from over 3,000 miles away number in the thousands of dollars every
year. Therefore, if Cespedes can walk recently well, he's going to be in the
line-up. Terry wants to keep his job as long as he can; Sandy wants to work at
keeping the organization together through the most extreme set of circumstances
over the past 7 years one could imagine; the Wilponzi's want $$$$$$ - and that,
in the end, trumps whatever it is that we think may be the RIGHT thing to do.
Right, Ryan Church??????
Oh-
and one more thing- Cruzado isn't the answer right now. We need to see Nimmo in
the lineup if Cespedes is out; we need to see Conforto get an extended look in
CF no matter who else is in the lineup; and we need, at this point, to get
Grandy into the lineup while he's hot, even if it means moving Bruce to 1B in a
rotation and moving Flores between second and third to keep his red-hot bat in
the line-up daily, too. We have enough moving parts already in the bigs without
needing to add to it, UNLESS we're talking about AMED ROSARIO- and THAT is a
story for a DIFFERENT DAY!!!!!
4 comments:
Interesting that when I wrote my comment that the Nats could also run into injuries, they suffer a major blow with the loss of Trea Turner. That makes the Nats take a giant step towards being an average team. We have 3 vs. Phils, then 3 vs. Nats...get hot, or sell. The towel is ready to be thrown, but the past week and the Turner injury delays that. Turner in 2016 and 2017 has hit .315 in 601 at bats, 59 extra base hits and 68 of 80 in steals. THAT is a HUGE LOSS.
Cespedes in the line up could make magic happen again over the next 6 games. The Mets rarely experience magic, but when they do, it truly is magical - maybe we are about to run into one of those moments.
Hopefully, Cespedes health-wise maintains or improves on where he is at now, until the All Star Break - the days off will do him a lot of good. He has played far too little to be an All Star in 2017. Jake should go. Or Bruce.
Cruzado went 0-5 with 3 Ks last night - clearly no rush there, he absolutely needs to play another 60-70 AAA games to better see what we have in him.
Cespedes should play every day. Sure give him a rest once a week and definitely the game before an off day(so he gets two days off in a row), but he should be playing.
I know it was reported that the Mets are willing to listen to offers for their players but we're a long way off from the deadline and Sandy isn't going to jump at the first deal he gets offered. He's too calculating and would want to wait and see how the market will develop before accepting any trade proposals.
So, play this guy. He's being paid a fortune and it seems as if he may be prone to leg issues anyway. Time off may not be a factor in keeping him healthy long term. He may just be one healthy run away from the DL every time he steps onto the field.
Charles, I agree - play Cespedes almost every game. Hopefully, if the mets are winning a blow out, he can come out early.
Cespedes needs to play as much as possible. This thing is going to be decided within 2 weeks and if Cespedes is on the bench, Mets chances to make a comeback are greatly diminished.
If he gets hurt and you lose him for another month so be it as it would make no difference. It would be like counting on Syndergaard to make a run while being out 12 games.
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