We talked earlier about what would be your 5-man 2022 opening day rotation, just using current members of the team, and projecting they are happy.
Now...
What would you try to make it be if you were the GM during the trade/FA prior to opening day?
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9 comments:
I'm good with the large draft collection the Mets have accumulated during this off-season and last year's failure to sign Kumar Rocker. Towards that end I would very much look to avoid the players who are free agents for whom compensatory picks would need to be sacrificed to make them Mets. Consequently, it means looking at the other picks who did not have compensation associated with them. It would also mean reviving that seldom-used transaction known as a trade. Towards that end I would consider players without clearly defined roles on this current team like Dom Smith, Jeff McNeil and J.D. Davis as bait for these offers to bring in quality starting pitching.
As long as its not an endless stream of Jerad Eickhoffs, Geoff Hartliebs and Stephen Tarpleys. Guys picked off the waiver wire, who give two innings of being lit up and then DFA'ed. I know last year was an abberation due to low usage in 2020.
Bob W is spot on as far as what to avoid.
Reese, an astute trade or two may well be necessary.
Luis Rojas, to NYY third base.
Will wonders never cease. Good luck with that. Maybe Luis can have a remote hook-in relay to his club house analytics computer, in order to know which Yankees to send home rounding third base?
Enough said there.
Now back to the real topic of a 2022 NYM rotation.
Like I pointed out here yesterday, in just just two off seasons the NYM have lost two very high quality H20 starters in Zach Wheeler, whom by the way missed the 2021 NL Cy Young Award by just one other pitcher ahead of him, and this off season Noah Syndergaard another outstanding right hander. These two were both unarguably winners and game changers. Most MLB teams can ill afford to lose just one like these were. The Mets lost two good arms and people, although contractually it was understandable. But it's time to lick our wounds and refortify the 2022 rotation. Build it better. It can be done.
So.
An organization has to fully understand this, that bringing in or up number four and five rotation starters to fill in for lost top end (one thru three ones) will not get the job of total replacement accomplished. Just won't and no cigar there for trying it. Futile. Re-think it.
Now let me mention the "psychology" involved here, because it is so vitally important.
It is precisely why the NYM tanked second half of 2021, after what looked to be a superlative first half start where most everything was going really favorably. Jake went down and the downward spiral had begun. It wasn't just the loss of Jake here, it was the overall attitude and confidence of the Mets batters after this. They went human.
So.
Okay then, let's get started.
In baseball (even at the Little League level age eight) just who is on the mound pitching for your team determines your own confidence level. In conjunction it determined a team's game attitude. The team's attitude with having a really good starter on the mound to begin a game, is so incredibly monumental to it. A known winning starter does this. It's a type of confidence that actually puts these players at ease, an ease that allows them to excel. Each player completely believe that they will win in that particular game. And so usually speaking, they do win.
Attitude rules all sports and life.
You can suggest that, well, these are not Little League players we are talking about, and confidence and attitude (pregame) should not change a professional players performance. True, they should not. But still, they are smart and they know which team has the better starter going that day. Don't they. Sure, no team can always have on the mound the better starter in every one game. But the starting matchup just "being close" can still be enough as well to get this accomplished. It is a reasonable challenge to motivate them.
We all saw this very thing second half of 2021.
It was never more clear really than then. So to me, this is what happened and why the batting here tanked so visibly and for no real reason other than attitude really. However, an organization cannot blindly go on trying to win and be the very best team that it can be in their respective division. It just won't work. We all know this now.
So.
I say here repetitively, like Pavlov's dog...lefty starters like Rodon and Ray for 2022. Two lefties starters of high quality H2O, to replace the two high quality H2O righties lost. Team benefits by this because they have not only a superlative right hander in Jake deGrom remaining, but four or five other really good young right handers to round out the four and five starter spots via a ST competition. This gives the 2022 NYM three very good right handers and two very good left handers.
Confidence is their's.
Agree with both Reese and Bob. There’s options that are quality and fit the Mets’ needs.
I think you sign Stroman, to add some support behind Jake.
I also like Tom’s idea of getting Luis Castillo (CIN), so long as we don’t mortgage the farm system to do so. Maybe use some of our excess like Davis, Smith or McNeil (one of them), along with a prospect who is blocked or redundant (Vientos comes to mind).
Those two, along with the incumbents would make a nice rotation for 2022.
Then go full Rays and find some low cost depth, perhaps.
Stoman needs to be at the top of the list
I'm leaving this comment before reading any of the others:
If I were the GM, I'd probably be going to daily mass praying for the health of deGrom and Carrasco.
1) deGrom
2) Stroman - I would try to do a 3 year with high AAV, maybe 3 and $80M might do it? I doubt it and think it will take 5 and $120MM. I would go there.
3) Carassco
4) Jon Gray - 3 and $40M
5) T.Walker
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6) Peterson - the first lefty
7) Megill - Hate to leave him out, but I can secure Stro and Gray, I have to do it.
8) Oller (Start Syracuse)
9) J. Walker (Start Syracuse)
10) T.Williams (Long man in MLB pen)
11) Yamamoto (Start Syracuse)
If Stroman cannot be had, see what it would take to pry Castillo from the Reds or Manaea from the A's (altho I hate to trade for just one year players)
Lots of good comments here. So if you believe in building a strong team that competes every year, then agree with Reese and Bob that we don't want to lose our quiver of draft picks. That leaves some really good FA pitchers off the list like Robbie Ray. I agree with Mike and Remember 1969 that Stroman is worth a deal - he gave us 179 innings in 2021 with a 3.02 ERA. With any type of reasonable hitting behind him, that wins games. We need a strong lefty, and I'm not sure that Peterson is there yet - though I love his mental toughness and would not give up on him. So I say go get Carlos Rodon from the CWS. He had a 2.37 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, and .189 BAA last year, and if he is good for 150+ innings in 2022 that's more wins. That said, here's my first five:
1) Jacob deGrom - healthy and dominant again
2) Marcus Stroman - will take some cash here, Steve...but he earned it
3) Carlos Rodon - FA signings are going to be expensive - but would sacrifice position player FAs to get Stroman & Rodon.
4) Taijuan Walker - he rights the ship and pitches like the first half of 2021
5) Tylor Megill - another mentally tough pitcher
6) Peterson, Carrasco, Williams will all compete, but will be next up when the inevitable injuries occur.
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