Twas the week before trade deadline and all through the league, the rumors were hot and the sellers are not.
OK, poor attempt and it won't go any further, but some thoughts on the week.
The Mets go from "We need pitching" to "We need hitting" and back and forth. As I watch them wimper softly against average left handed starters and relievers, I am more in the boat of trying to pry Kris Bryant and his right handed bat and see if they can come close to the Cespedes magic of 2015. Last night's double header shows that this team is not always the same bashers they were in Cincinnati.
With that said, I really detest having to start Aaron Loup, the best left handed option in the pen or sign Jarad Eichhoff to daily contracts. Getting Cookie Carrasco back at some point this week should help, but he hasn't thrown more than three innings yet in any rehab start, so he'll need to ramp up.
Starting pitching is the focus of the week for me. Even with Rich Hill, another starter at this point is almost a necessity.
Who are the pitchers to find?
The ink about Max Schertzer is silly. I don't care if Max is dealt from the Nats, but that is not the level of pitcher that is needed in New York at this time. Besides, the belief is that he doesn't want to come here, so move on.
Jose Berrios from the Twins would be a nice add, but would be more expensive in prospect capital and would take one of Baty, Vientos, or Mauricio. There would need to be a bigger package (Buxton??) to include one of them. One and a half years of Berrios is not worth any of the three and more.
If I am going to include one of the top prospects, and granted, all are left side infielders, but I might give Baltimore a call and see what it might take to pry John Means away. He will not be a free agent until 2025, so three more years would make it more palatable to trade a top future prospect.
I would be much more inclined this week to look at the half year rental option, namely Danny Duffy from the Royals, Zach Davies from the Cubs, or Jon Gray from the Rockies. If Tyler Anderson can be had for two Low A players with the Phillies 29th ranked MLB.com prospect being the better, obtaining any of these short term options should not be prohibitively expensive. Kyle Gibson from the Rangers is another option, but he does have one addition year left on his contract, so it might cost a bit more.
At any rate, this is always one of the more interesting weeks of the summer. Sit back and enjoy.
My final comment: Do not trade Tylor Megill in any deal. I have seen some of these experts propose trades and include him in the swap for a middling pitcher. WHY? Just Don't Do It!
5 comments:
Another strong outing from Megill just reinforces my directive not to trade him.
I gotta give credit to Tom for singing his praises for the last six months or so. This guy is a keeper. It looks like he'll solidify the rotation from here on out.
Better pitch efficiency will let him work further into games, but his ability to limit damage after a couple hits is outstanding. This guy is here to stay. The best deadline addition we can get.
With the emergence of McGrom, the return of Cookie, and Jake throwing sides... well, I would concentrate on the pen here.
Megill, if he were winning (translated: if the stinking Mets would score for him) would be a mid-June pick up oddly reminiscent of 1984 Rick Sutcliffe - at least so far. The Cubs DID score for Sutcliffe, acquired in mid-June - he went 16-1 as a Cub, was a big reason the 1984 Mets missed the playoffs and won the Cy Young. You don't trade away Cy Young. Megill is 7 starts in - everyone (including Craig Carton yesterday) expects him to falter - but his overall repertoire to me is bona fide strong MLB starter. Why can't he continue strong? Good fastball, good breaking ball, excellent change, locates very well, and mixes pitches very well.
Megill, like Jake, can also hit. In the minors, they almost never hit, but he had one game where he did, and had a single, and an RBI ground out, and no K, and I thought then, "this guy is a hitting pitcher, too." Another (small) reason to not trade him. It mattered last night.
I agree with Mack - add a pen arm or two - this "reliever starts the game" approach has worked far better than the Eickhoff approach - a few more relievers will prevent burn out.
I've been suggesting we improve the bullpen since before the start of the season.
Agree on Megill. I continue to be surprised at so-called experts proposing a trade that includes Tylor for another pitcher
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