Reese Kaplan -- One Radical Idea (and a Few Others)

As much as it hurts me to think like a Wilpon or a Ricco, I believe I have come up with a good idea that warrants some serious consideration. 

First, let’s get the whole Pete Alonso thing off the table.  He’s not on the 40-man roster.  He doesn’t have to be put on the 40-man roster this winter, so keeping him off of it preserves a space to protect another player.  Holding him back for a few weeks in 2019 gets the Mets another year of financial control.  Consequently, don’t expect to see him for a September cup of coffee, let alone an August call-up. 

Next comes the fan favorite, Wilmer Flores.  There are a couple of issues at play here.  First, of course, is his Michael Jackson impression with a glove that he wears for no apparent reason.  We all felt that 1^st base was the least defensively challenging position on the diamond yet Wilmer has demonstrated that if you build a better mousetrap he’s simply a more clever mouse, discovering new ways to botch plays. 

Now he’s your best right-handed hitter with Yoenis Cespedes on the shelf, so his bat has been fairly essential to the rare times they win ballgames.  He’s currently producing to the tune of .273/10/39 in fewer than 300 ABs.  That’s a pace of 20 HRs and 78 RBIs over the course of a full season…perhaps a bit light for a first baseman, but by Mets standards that’s downright formidable.  Oh yeah, he’s also struck out just 30 times while walking 26.  That means for a 20 HR hitter he’d strike out only 60 times over the course of a full season.  Any way you slice it, that’s solid offensive production.

Here therein lies the rub.  If he’s not suited to playing the field and already earns $3.4 million heading into another arbitration year, then perhaps the best bet for the team who is clearly out of any dream of contention is to bench him.  Hear me out.

He’s not doing the pitchers any favors with his defense. The more he racks up numbers, the more a potential arbiter will look to reward him for it.  If he’s not considered the long-term option at 1^st base, 2^nd base, SS or 3^rd base, then he’s either trade bait or a bench player.  Isn’t that all correct?   Benching him suppresses his potential salary which makes him more attractive in trade as well.

The answer should be to promote not Pete Alonso but Dominic Smith.  Again, hear me out.  He’s not exactly performing at the same level as Alonso, but he is already on the 40-man roster.  Right now you have a need to see what he can do lest he become the next Gavin Cecchini of lost cause high draft picks.  If he flops, then you write him off as a bad pick.  If he succeeds, then he becomes desirable for other teams in quest of a cost-controllable asset.  Right now playing in AAA in the .260 range he doesn’t represent a future in Queens nor in any of the other 29 major league locations. 

Now the other part of this equation is getting Jay Bruce back as quickly as possible.  The thought here is pretty much the same.  He needs to demonstrate his power production in order to be either penciled into the plans for 2019 or to become a lefty slugger another team could use. 

Moving his contract will not be easy but if he has a productive September, it’s not impossible.  Find another team’s bad contract and do a classic change-of-scenery deal.  A relief pitcher like Mark Melancon is owed the exact same $28 million as Bruce for the next two years. 

Bryan Shaw who thrived under Mickey Callaway is having a nightmarish season in Colorado.  Maybe the Rockies would like to be out from under the $17.5 plus $2 million option over the next two years.  In that one you might have to sweeten the deal a bit to even out the money.  Maybe throwing in a cost-controlled young player would get them to bite.  Hint – Dom Smith, Gavin Cecchini…

Please, can we stop with the Joses?  Bautista and Reyes are both wastes of roster space whose time is long past due.  Please play Jeff McNeil and Todd Frazier day in and day out for different reasons.  In McNeil’s case, let’s see if he is indeed the late blooming answer to 2^nd base.  In Frazier’s case, let’s see if he can at least display his power which might entice another team to take on his final year salary. 

Austin Jackson has been a nice story.  So was Nori Aoki.  The said sayonara to the latter at season's end.  They should do the same with this year's version.  He doesn't need to play either.

Finally, and this one is not new, PLEASE let Corey Oswalt stay in the rotation even if Steven Matz returns. Last night's solid start notwithstanding, Jason Vargas is the very definition of a sunk cost.  Perhaps recast as a relief pitcher could help him regain whatever it was he once had (though the numbers suggest it was never very much).  You need to find out what Oswalt can do.  You know what Vargas is.  (Choose your own expletive). 

There is a minor problem with this approach.  Between Smith, McNeil, Bruce, Conforto and Nimmo you're tilting very heavily towards the left side.  Still, at this point in the season I am less concerned about winning than I am about planning for the future.  In addition, how will you know if these lefties can hit left handed pitching unless they get to face it regularly?