2/9/24

OPEN THREAD: Yep That Again: “Trevor Bauer to Mets, Folks?”

Are the Mets interested?

The remote possibility of Trevor Bauer to the Mets has been bandied about here for a while now, and has gotten mostly “Nays” on the issue from readers here, but might it be time to revisit Trevor Bauer? 

Is he someone the Mets should sign, given that, as Jon Heyman reported (see italics), the price is very right?

Trevor (who was suspended “194 games and most recently pitched in Japan), is offering to accept MLB’s lowest salary of $740,000 (plus incentives). 

“But though “seven or eight” teams are still communicating with Bauer’s people, led by baseball agent/lawyer Jon Fetterolf, no one has signed him yet.

 Fetterolf said Bauer — who has a standing offer to return to the Yokohama Bay Stars, for whom he went 10-4 with a 2.76 ERA and had no known issues — understands that any signing team would be taking “a PR hit,” which is behind this offer. And if anything goes awry, Fetterolf added, “You can get rid of him at the minimum.” ”

If he did agree to a really cheap one year Mets deal, and the Mets also convinced JD Martinez to sign a 1 year deal for, say, $15 million or even $20 million, with no incentives and only a team-exercisable option, would the Mets’ currently projected 84-78 record for 2024 become a projected 90-72 Wild Card-probably record?

Speak your piece.  Or forever hold it.

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

I would sign him. We don't have an ace at the moment and I think Bauer fits the bill. The Mets have a history of signing domestic violence players anyway lol

Rds 900. said...

Sign him.

Tom Brennan said...

I agree. Sign him.

If fans go coo coo for Cocoa Puffs over him? Cut him.

Sign JD Martinez, too, if he'll do just one year.

Then...let's play some playoffs baseball this October.

Post-season, he has 34 innings and a 2.94 ERA.

He recently turned 33, for the record.

Mack Ade said...

DON'T

Tom Brennan said...

I knew if I did this open thread, Mack, it would be like poking the bear.

Mack Ade said...

JUST DON'T

(another Biden moment)

That Adam Smith said...

I wouldn’t sign Bauer if he paid US the league minimum to play here. And Martinez, who hasn’t put on a glove in two years, goes against both the plan for the kids and Stearns’ stated goal of a flexible roster.

Tom Brennan said...

Adam may be the voice of reason. That said, JD knocked in 103 runs in 432 at bats last year. Only Met ever to drive them in at that pace was Clendenon (97 RBIs in 396 at bats in 1970). Not even Pete has an RBI per at bat ratio quite that good.

Realize that if Baty or Vientos get 432 at bats in 2024, they may knock in half as many runs.

bill metsiac said...

If we're looking short-term vs long-term, we should've kept Verlander and Max instead of trading them for prospects.

That would make us (probably) stronger this year, but significally weaker next year and beyond.

I'm with Mack again, and (I think) Stearns and Cohen on this. The future looks bright, but we must give the kids the chance to show what they can offer.

Pal88 said...

Remember when he gave everyone the impression he would sign with the Mets several years ago, only to stick it to us and signed with the Dodgers? Well, I say, Don’t sign him. He’s a problem in the clubhouse. We don’t need that.

Paul Articulates said...

I am on Metsiac's side. If you take a team that might just miss the playoffs and turn it into a team that just might make the playoffs, but doesn't go far then you gain a short term win at the expense of the long term objective. Bad move.

Also, to expound on Mack's point, once you make a move like signing Trevor Bauer, you establish the fact that you will compromise integrity for short term wins. That perception does not erase easily if ever. This once again sacrifices the long term objective for a short term win if everything goes right. Bad move.

If, on the other hand you sign neither of these guys and give Baty and Vientos and Stewart lots of opportunity and at least one of them pans out, we will be smiling about it forever. Good move.

That Adam Smith said...

All due respect both to you and to JD’s offensive talents, but without Betts and Freeman hitting in front of him, it’s doubtful that Martinez would have knocked in that many himself last season.

Jon Messinger said...

form a talent development perspective, I say JD Martinez no, because you want to give a chance to the prospects who are here and hopefully ready. as to Trevor Bauer, the Mets don't have pitching prospects knocking on the door; at some point in the season, if prospects are ready to be given a chance, and if Bauer is a worthwhile trading chip, then trade him and get back another prospect.

Mack Ade said...

Baseball just suspended Eppler for a year for bogus Mets injury reports

Now you want sign this turd?

Tom Brennan said...

I think Bauer has been humbled. I am not against redemption. I wonder what the players think.

Paul, the Mets did not sign bad boy Garry Sheffield when he was first very interested in the Mets. Ventura and Zeile didn’t want him. Too much clout for those two. After the Mets passed, he had about 8 straight HOF caliber hitting seasons, which (not having that on the Mets) might have cost the Mets a World Series or two.

I did not follow Bauer case very closely, but his suspension was shortened from 2 years to 190 games. Baseball presumably did that for a reason. Ron Leflore did some nasty stuff, but was allowed to play thereafter for years.

Eppler…not “honest” Billy Ball. For shame. Did any other teams also falsify? Suspend them too.

TexasGusCC said...

Jose Reyes choked his wife, and it wasn’t fabricated to sue him.
Jeryeus Familia hit his wife, and it wasn’t fabricated to sue him.
Wally Backman was a first class asshole and basically a piece of shit to Gregg Jeffries for no reason, and we wanted him to manage the team. And Jeffries never said a bad thing about him and after he retired said it was his own fault!

I don’t see why our ethics for ball players just went up. Sign him.

Tom Brennan said...

Gus, thank you, ESPECIALLY if he has turned over a new leaf.

How about Rick Camp, a decent pitcher but a horrible hitter, who hit that HR against Tom Gorman in the 18th inning on an 0-2, 2 out count to tie the game up? In September 2005, Camp was sentenced, along with four other people, including former Georgia State Representative Robin L. Williams, to a term in federal prison for conspiring to steal more than $2 million from the Community Mental Health Center in Augusta, Georgia.

Camp received a three-year sentence, while Williams got ten years.

I saw him in a picture at a Braves Legends game in 2011, grinning from ear to ear. Apparently, he was forgiven and back in good graces.

TexasGusCC said...

Look, the only thing that bothers me is that his agent got Mack’s friend fired from their job. He should make amends for that. As for his fabricated court case by some gold digger, as a man, I’m tired of women preying on men.

There are men that deserve it, but too often men are targeted when there are women that can do just about anything to guys and what man actually does anything about it?

Anonymous said...

Oh those mean women! They take advantage of men,white men.