In my last article I suggested that the Mets, despite rumors
to the contrary, do have pieces that would be desirable to other teams. However, it is always less risky and easier
to acquire players via free agency than peddling away someone like, for
example, Brandon Nimmo, who might turn out to be a solid major leaguer. To ink a free agent requires only a sales
pitch and dollars (the latter of which is sometimes hard to come by in MetsWorld).
So, going into the season it would appear the team on the
offensive/defensive side of the ledger is in need of a second baseman if you
pencil in Asdrubal Cabrera for third, a third baseman if you pencil in Asdrubal
Cabrera for second, and an outfielder given that they only have 4 healthy ones
on the roster. Let’s see who’s still out
there and within the team’s limited budget.
Let’s get the big pair out of the way first. Mike Moustakas is looking to cash in on his
walk-year season and doesn’t seem to be in the Mets’ budget. Todd Frazier might be a bit cheaper given
that his batting average is so poor, but he makes up for it with strong defense
and a good clubhouse presence.
Eduardo Nunez’ market has been surprisingly quiet this
offseason considering his career hitting prowess and his strong 2017
campaign. Like Wilmer Flores, clubs have
tried him all over the place in order to hide his glove, but positional
versatility, stolen base acumen and decent on-base percentage might make him a
worthy gamble. Of course, if you want a
poor fielder with good speed then Jose Reyes might be cheaper and we all know
that cost trumps all for this ballclub.
Brandon Phillips has been a solid contributor primarily to
the Cincinnati Reds throughout his career.
Never a flashy fielder, he earned his paycheck with his legs and his
bat, clubbing as many as 32 HRs and stealing as many as 30 bases in a
season. For his career he’s a .275
hitter and hit .285 combined for two teams last year. Entering his age 36 season his best days are
behind him, but he would be a credible stopgap for Luis Guillorme.
Jose Reyes is a pretty polarizing player. He’s been called a mentor for Amed Rosario, a
virus and he has that nasty bit of off-field behavior clouding his
reputation. Mets fans remember him for
his batting title season, his many stolen bases and his formerly flashy fielding,
but now he’s likely a bench player on a good team (or starter and leading off
for the Mets). For much of last year he
looked totally lost and couldn’t crack the Mendoza line, but he finished
strongly and with $4 million in his pocket from Colorado he could likely be had
on the cheap.
Chase Utley will forever be booed by the Mets fans for his
dirty slide that resulted in Ruben Tejada breaking his leg, but he has been a
solid hitter during his long career. His
most recent seasons have been in part time roles and he’s not faired too well,
so it’s not likely that his bat could revive enough to overcome the bad PR that
would result from signing him.
Neil Walker is what he is – a streaky, injury prone player
who took $17.2 million of the Wilpons’ money last year for lackluster
performance. At age 32 he’s likely
seeking a multiyear deal and bringing him back only ensures that the same club
that lost in 2017 is coming back together again. I’d pass.
Yunel Escobar is another player with a somewhat sketchy
personal reputation after an incident
in 2012 which resulted in a 3 game suspension while playing for
Toronto. He’s a career .282 hitter but
with a bad glove reputation. If you’re
going to go with that, then I’d just play Wilmer Flores. Pass.
Trevor Plouffe had a couple of good power years in Minnesota
but he’s kind of in that Curtis Granderson all-or-nothing mold. Lately he’s been relegated to part time play
and the lack of steady at-bats has depressed his already mediocre batting
average. His last good season was in
2015, but he is a steady glove and bats from the right hand side. He is the type who might be worth a minor
league invitation.
J.J. Hardy was cut loose by Baltimore after a long career
there and at age 36 won’t cost and arm and a leg. He was always a stellar fielder who a
lifetime ago was counted upon to deliver 20+ home runs per season. He’s not the power threat he once was, but
could be in that mold of a one-year stopgap who could provide mentoring to Amed
Rosario if he could be persuaded to move to the left or right of
shortstop.
One name not very familiar to many folks is Arismendy
Alcantara. He’s a speedster with some
power who has played both the infield and centerfield during his career. In the minors he was a .275 hitter but in the
majors he’s struggled to hit the Mendoza line over parts of four seasons. At age 26 he’s someone worth considering to
stash in AAA where they’re even more bereft of outfielders than is the parent
club.
Once you cross the infield dirt into the grassy areas
extending back to the fences, the Mets would seem to be fairly full if everyone
was healthy. Right now Opening Day
should include Yoenis Cespedes in LF, Jay Bruce in RF, and one of Brandon Nimmo
or Juan Lagares in CF. That would seem
to leave an OF vacancy to be filled by a backup type who becomes superfluous
once Michael Conforto is ready to play.
Towards that end let’s skip over the starting caliber players like J.D.
Martinez, Lorenzo Cain, Melky Cabrera and others instead to focus on the
available backups.
Now former Met Nori Aoki would not be the worst choice to join Jay Bruce in making a return to the team. He was a consistent .280 hitter throughout his career and shows no signs of slowing down. The diminutive outfielder is a pesky hitter with decent speed albeit unimpressive defense. The Mets cut him rather than face an arbitration for his final year of services. The now 36 year old should be available for less than the $5.5 million he earned last year (though the Mets only paid pro-rated major league minimum).
Although the man might argue the point, at this stage of his career Joey Bats is no longer a starting outfielder. Jose Bautista is turning 38 this season and won’t embarrass himself if called into duty due to injury. He’d be a nice bat off the bench. He hit a mere .203 last season but still managed to hit 23 HRs.
Although the man might argue the point, at this stage of his career Joey Bats is no longer a starting outfielder. Jose Bautista is turning 38 this season and won’t embarrass himself if called into duty due to injury. He’d be a nice bat off the bench. He hit a mere .203 last season but still managed to hit 23 HRs.
Peter Bourjos has always had a reputation of a Gold Glove
caliber outfielder with some speed but he’s never hit enough to ensure a steady
starting role. Entering his 30s he would
probably be content with a reserve role but with the limited starting
assignments available after Conforto’s return, he may not find the Mets to his
liking.
Rajai Davis is a slightly better hitting version of Eric
Young, Jr. He’s good for 30 SBs in his
sleep but at age 38 he’s best suited to a reserve role and pinch running duties.
Jarrod Dyson is nearly as fast as Davis but brings his
Hoover of a glove with him as well. He
was a part-timer last year in Seattle and would be used similarly here.
Craig Gentry is another speedster who is accustomed to the
reserve role. A .267 career hitter, he
won’t embarrass you if called upon for the occasional start and would provide
speed off the bench.
Franklin Guttierez hasn’t been a starter since 2010. He’s not going to hurt you but there’s nothing
about his game that’s particularly helpful.
As someone who might ride the NY/Las Vegas shuttle, he’d be
adequate.
Austin Jackson was last a starter in 2015 and delivered
.267/9/48 with 17 SBs while playing a solid CF.
He’s just 30 and like Bourjos may still think he’s a starter.
Jon Jay is a solid hitter (career .288) and a stellar
fielder yet in the past few years he has not been a starter. At age 32 he probably wants gig where he’s
ensured more opportunities play, but he’d be a great left handed complement to
Juan Lagares temporarily in CF.
Ryan Raburn is appealing due to his versatility having
logged an aggregate of a season’s worth of starts at 2B as well as several
season’s worth in the outfield. Nothing
about his game stands out in terms of speed or power or defense, but he’s made
a long career as a reputable backup player.
Ben Revere is a .284 career hitter with lightning speed
though lately his defense has been regarded as subpar.
Seth Smith is a career journeyman who has better than
average power and will be 36 come the start of the season. He’s a left handed hitter without much speed,
a capable reserve but probably not the best choice.
At age 45 Ichiro Suzuki knows what his role will be if he
chooses to come back for another season after a borderline Hall of Fame
career. His 2017 line was ugly by his
standards – just a .255 AVG with 3 HRs and 20 RBIs and a single stolen
base. Compared to his .312 career
average which includes more than 3000 hits in the USA portion of his career,
that’s not good. Age may have caught up
to him but if he’d come to camp on a minor league deal I’d certainly be
interested.
The oft-injured Jayson Werth will turn 39 during the
upcoming season but still has some power in his right handed bat. That’s about all he can contribute, not
blessed with great speed or a high batting average. I’d pass.
Top Choices
As much as it pains me to say it, I think Jose Reyes is the best infield fit for the club. He can still run, he hit with some power and he has an established relationship with Amed Rosario. My second choice for an infielder would be Eduardo Nunez as he too can handle the leadoff and 2B roles. Third choice would be a tossup between J.J. Hardy and Brandon Phillips.
For the outfield role I would like to see them try Ichiro as it's possible he has lost it and thus could be cut after Conforto returns. Raburn is appealing for the versatility. Gentry or Davis would accept the role probably more readily than would Revere or Dyson.
Despite Sandy Alderson's comments in the press conference that he could have the wherewithal for another splashy move and his preference is for the free agent market as it does not require sacrificing scarce resources, please do remember that you're talking about the Wilpons in charge of the checkbook. Get those visions of All-Star caliber players out of your head. Who would you choose to fulfill these needs?
12 comments:
Interesting list and I can see the Mets adding someone from it for depth purposes. However, I also want a starting caliber second baseman, so we can move an existing player to a utility role, lessening the need for outside help.
Brandon Phillips is an intriguing option, if all else fails in an effort to address 2B.
Morning Reese -
I would like the remaining money available to Sandy to be used at the hot corner.
Todd Frazier meets my needs.
1. He plays ++ defense which you all know is the most important thing in my team building plan.
2. His 27HR/76RBIs last year fit it well with this team
3. His last year $12mil deal is in line
Sure, he could have a higher BA, but nothing is perfect here.
This is a troubled position for the Mets. No one knows the future of David Wright and the question whether David Thompson can fill his shoes also remains unanswered. Lastly, there doesn't seem to be any reason to wait a year here for Machado, who will be way out of our range, money wise.
Sit down Wright and work things out here.
Then, sign Frazier to a 2-year deadl, with a 3rd year team option.
Nunez's on base percentage for his career in rancid and "position versality?" Really? Besides for OF his defense everywhere else is abhorrent. He's an easy pass for me. Oh and Frazier is better than Moose
Phillips is brutal at this stage of his career.
Brutal is a bit harsh.......I would like him as a bench piece that can play some, not as a long term solution. Brutal would be trusting the position to someone like Wilmer, IMO. I love the guy's heart and he can hit (against lefties, anyway), but his defense would be frightening.
Why is no one mentioning Gavin Cecchini and Phil Evans :)
Or Matt Reynolds? :)
His defensive metrics at each infield position is rated terribly. If he doesn't hit .300 his obp is dreadful.
I think they'll go with 4 OF'rs and a BP of 8 until Conforto is ready. Reynolds (or, I guess, Jose) would be the an IF6/OF5 UT until TJ returns.
The only acquisition that makes sense to me is Frasier. As much as I want to see Wilmer get an extended FT 2B assignment, I guess Asdrubal will get a chunk of 2B (as well as some SS & 3B) and Flores rattles back and forth between 2B & 1B if Frasier is on board. Not a horrible scenario.
With zero acquisitions, Cabrerra (3B), Flores (2B) and a bench of Nimmo/Lagares (OF), TJ (CINF) and Guillorme (MINF) would be my choice.
Darkest of horses scenario: Evans rakes in ST bumping Cabrerra, who becomes the MINF UT playing at least 1/2 FT at 2B, SS & 3B.
Evans is a minor league lifer while Cabrera is a very good hitter.
If Frazier comes, who leads off? I see Cabby as #2 and Rosario #8 to start the season. 3-7 will be some combo of 4to, Bruce, Yo, Gonzo and a catcher.
I guess Lag or Nimmo could hit there until 4to returns, but hopefully that will be early in May, with most of the season remaining.
WOW! Reese, great piece. You must have spent a lot of time researching it. Very thorough and thought provoking . . but my mind was already made up, so don't confuse me with facts. LOL
I am with Mack on this, for the most part. I have very mixed feelings as to whether we should give up a guy like Nimmo plus a good prospect or two, to acquire Josh Harrison, who I do believe is our best bet. JH gives us Nunez's speed and athleticism without any of the defensive shortcomings. Absent trading for Harrison, I definitely want Frazier, for all Mack's reasons. I think Alderson will bring Reyes back, not as the regular 2B but as bench depth. Reyes has already indicated that he will sign with the Mets on a very "team friendly" basis.
Re: the outfield, I am inclined to agree with Hobie on 4 OF's until Conforto's return, although one of the NRI's might hit his way onto the team in ST. I'd like to see them give Jayce Boyd a shot, but as of now, he is not invited.
If Nimmo is traded, however, the team will need a replacement. Of all the outfielders Reese presented, Ben Revere would be my guy. He will still be only 29 at the start of next season, is a decent .280 hitter who can give us 20 or so SB's even in a limited role. His defense has slipped some, although at his age, I don't see any reason for it, but he could always be replaced by Lagares in the late innings. Last year he had 257 PA's against righties, hitting .298 with a .335 OBP. IMO, he would be a good, inexpensive replacement for Nimmo.
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