Blue Jays center fielder Colby Rasmus discussed his disappointing season and pending free agency in a lengthy and excellent interview with Scott Macarthur of TSN.ca. Rasmus’s comments are too lengthy and complicated to encapsulate fully and fairly here, but are well worth a read (or a listen) to anyone interested in understanding one of the more interesting free agent situations in the game. Ultimately, Rasmus comes across as an extremely thoughtful player who, perhaps, needs the right environment to thrive. Though he did not say outright that he does not view that place as Toronto, Rasmus did say that his time with the Cardinals was at times “so unenjoyable that I had trouble wanting to come to the yard everyday and enjoy it,” and noted that he has “kind of run into some of that” this season as well. Said Rasmus: “This year has been a tough year and I’m just going to go home, enjoy it, go back to the drawing board and try to work my tail off this offseason to get in good shape and hopefully find a place to where I fit in well and I can help my team win.” It will be fascinating to see how his free agency turns out; though he has had good years and bad, Rasmus just turned 28, offers rare power for a center fielder, and has put up two approximately four-win seasons.
- Mets starter Dillon Gee is under team control for next year, but as Newsday’s Marc Carig writes, he could find himself squeezed out of the rotation after a tough second half. “I’ll have a spot somewhere,” said Gee. “It might not be here but it will be somewhere.”
- The Mets could be more and more inclined to hold off on adding a shortstop given the recent play of Wilmer Flores, as Mike Puma of the New York Post reports. “We’re getting a lot more comfortable,” said GM Sandy Alderson. “One of the reasons for giving [Flores] as much playing time as we have is to build up his number of plate appearances to get him more comfortable to try to establish sort of a baseline.” Alderson said that Flores has done a solid job defensively at short, noting that Ruben Tejada and Matt Reynolds also remain internal options to take the position next year.
- While Yasmani Tomas makes a good deal of sense for the Phillies, that does not mean that they are favorites to sign him, writes David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News. Other clubs in better position to contend will likely place an increased value on adding a bat like Tomas given their spot on the win curve, Murphy suggests.
MLBTR 2 days ago “The shortstop position continues to be a major question mark for the Mets heading into the offseason…. Wilmer Flores has not yet delivered on his well-regarded ability at the plate at the MLB level”
Yes, I wrote that too. It isn’t inconsistent. His overall numbers aren’t that great, but he’s been hot lately.
Ultimately, it doesn’t matter that much. He’s young and new to the bigs. Most importantly, he’s giving some hope that he could potentially stick at short. The bat has never been the question.
I am rooting for the guy. Flores is an exciting player. However, a team like the Mets should spend money and get a proven SS
Given the other needs and apparent payroll limitations, I think it’s likely they stick with internal options next year. Whether or not that’s wise remains to be seen.
Of course, one of the veteran guys could fall through the cracks and be had on a cheap deal. Would be pretty nice to add a player such as Stephen Drew, say, on a pillow contract — gives depth, veteran presence, possibility of a turnaround, etc.
I agree, if the Mets could land someone like Stephen Drew, he would be a great fit. It’s going to be an interesting offseason since they aren’t willing to spend money again. Some of that is wise, these ridiculous contracts that keep getting handed out aren’t working for teams, but they need to take a chance sometime. We need Murphy in the line up but as much as Sandy wants to go young, I wouldn’t surprised if he gets dealt. Sandy needs to make better choices this offseason when it comes to signing free agents. Stop tying what little money we have into super bust type guys like Young and Francisco
I didn’t want the Mets to sign Drew last year and I absolutely stand by that, but he might actually be a better fit for them this offseason. He has practically no leverage to demand an unreasonable contract now that he’s performed so dreadfully this season, and he would allow them to try out Flores/Reynolds/etc. without putting all of their eggs in that basket.
Disagree. 1) Either Reynolds or Flores will be able to outhit drew. 2) Drew offers no upside. 3) It will be tough allocating ABs among 3 players for 1 position
I really think Melky Cabrera is an interesting name for the Mets. Although his defense is a sub-par he would offer the Mets a decent bat to stretch out the order a bit. His gap power would fit well in that ballpark and his OBP and plate discipline would help keep the order moving along. If he could be had for 3/36 or 4/45 the Mets should look at taking a chance on him.
Sub-par defense? Dude he’s been one of the best outfielders in the AL this year…look at how many he’s thrown out.
Manny Ramirez lead the league in assists. That didn’t make him a good outfielder. Cabrera is not a good defensive outfielder, he’s ok out there as long as he’s swinging the bat. My eyes say he’s subpar and so do all the advanced metrics.
A lot of GM speak in this article. Right up there with Brian Cashman saying that they will just go with Bubba Crosby before going out and signing Damon. There is no way the Mets feel that Flores or Reynolds are ideal.
Just remember the price of a new ss outside may cost us more then its worth. we do not want to trade any of the top 4 Harvey , Wheeler, de Grom or Syndergaard that that is the price for a upper calibur ss . in a trade think if its really worth giving up one of those guys i say maybe not.
Reynolds and Flores maybe better then going out and over paying for a elite ss. i would put Murphy at first and try to interest a team in Duda. i think the all around offense of Murphy vs betting on a repete career season on Duda . Not sure if he will be able to repete this year again next year.
They had Murphy at first a few years ago . Its not a good idea. A lot of Murphy’s value comes from the fact that he plays 2b. I’m not sure why you’d want to trade Duda.
i know but he is taylor made as a hitter for Citi field and too me i feel he is just as good defense as Lucas and always consistant for the positive . i think Duda is having a career year not sure if it would not be better to bank on that and get some value while there is value for him. I think your thinking of him in LF. because at first he was fair not great i will not say that but he is no Keith but neither is Duda.
Rasmus has been on teams with legitimate playoff aspirations his whole career. What more does he want?
I could respect this if he was willing to take a small deal to play for the team of his dreams. But we’re talking about a guy whose lackluster performance serves as a serious detriment to his team’s chances at October. Toronto and St. Louis have been noted for their positive clubhouse atmosphere. The problem is Rasmus.
Who noted those clubs for positive clubhouse atmosphere? The people who already populate them and the journalists who are financially invested in covering them?
What I have heard about the Cardinals clubhouse is that it is very structured and business like. Not bad things but maybe not the environment that a younger guy would thrive in. Maybe a little free and easy clubhouse is what he needs. I have no idea I don’t know the kid. I personally would like to see him in KC if the money isn’t crazy, which it probably will be considering the OF crop is weak this year.
Younger guy? As if the Cardinals are comprised of numerous 40 year olds? Check the roster….count the number of players born in 1985 or afterwards. They’re a very young team and one of the top organizations in baseball. The Cubs (on the other hand) would be depressing!
The Rasmus interview might strike some as “thoughtful.” I had alarm bells going off all over the place. This guy, though he does seem very smart (for a professional athlete), also seems like a head case who will never find the “right situation.”
I used that description because I think it shows that he does dedicate a lot of thought to how he approaches the game. Thoughtfulness can, I think, have positive and negative ramifications for on-field results.
I think “head case” is too strong, but he is obviously not a guy that responds to what might be considered typical player motivation strategies. He also has plenty of talent, and has put it together at times at the MLB level. Could be that he’d thrive in the right setting — remains to be seen.
Ultimately, I applaud him for laying it all out there. It may or may not be beneficial, but it’s always great to see participants in any field (sports, politics, business) speaking openly rather than just offering platitudes.
I’ve always been a fan of Rasmus. I had hoped he could find success after the Cardinals shipped him off to Canada (not ripping Canada by any means). A move that got him as far away from his meddling father as possible. Guess that hasn’t worked out for him either. Maybe he can end up with a team that offers his dad a position within the organization and that will finally make him happy. Wish him the best of luck but don’t see him ever living up to the potential he once had.
I get the same feeling from him now. He’s one of those guys that when things aren’t perfect (and they usually aren’t), he just doesn’t have the mental fortitude to get through it. He has to learn to adapt instead of complaining that things aren’t the way he wants them.
Man, Rasmus does a great job in the opening comment blaming the shift, the change at hitting coach, umpires, injuries, and not getting enough days off. Seems like maybe the reason he hasn’t found the “right situation” is because he’s willing to blame his own struggles on everyone & everything but himself.
To be fair, defensive shifts does take away a lot of hits. There was an article out on it recently saying it took away around 300+ more hits then it’s given up this year.
I would love to see the Tigers go and get Rasmus in the offseason. He can’t cost too much, and we need some more LH pop in the lineup, especially if VMart leaves.
My favourite memories of Rasmus: 1) Watching pre-game warmups, he and the rest of the team were jogging in, and he ran past a kid with Downs Syndrome. He stopped dead, came back and signed the kid’s hat. He spent about 5 minutes talking with him and posed for a few pictures with him. Never seen a person so happy to meet his idol. 2) Spring training, he made the team bus late leaving chatting with a couple people about Chevy trucks at about 6:30 AM…must have talked for a half hour!!!!
He runs hard, plays hard, and doesn’t take anything for granted. Yes he strikes out a lot, but I’d take him on my team any day.
Don’t think he’ll make the Jays better than Gose and Pompey will in 2015…. saw a stat that the Jays had a better winning % when Gose started, but that may be skewed by the fact that Rasmus was hurt in June when they got really hot. He won’t be back in Toronto, but at least he’s not leaving with the same bad taste as when he was traded from St.Louis.
Unless the Mets find a SS that will bat lead off or is just an exceptional defender then there is no need to search outside the organization. Where will this new addition bat? 7th? How much improvement to the offense could he add from there ? Flores is fine batting 7th. The Amets should be concerned with finding a lead off hitter only. Other than that they have to decide whether to continue batting Wright 3rd and bringing in some power to play LF or SS and batting hem 3rd and/or dumping Granderson ( which they won’t ) us moving TDA to 6th in which his offense can still be effective .
My point is there is no need to bring in anyone who isn’t a leadoff unless they are willing to make major adjustments to their lineup. 2-6 is already spoken for and although not a scary lineup could be just enough with the right bat leading off and he pitching depth the Mets have
Just stick with Flores and bat Lagares 1s until Nimmo is ready. No need to waste money on a bat to hit 7th when Flores has all that potential
I posted below That I think Melky Cabrera would be a nice addition. Although his defense is below average and his baseruning is meh his gap power and OBP would fit well at the top of the order with Murphy. It would be a gamble for sure but since the Mets seem unlikely to dump the resources into a high priced acquisition, Cabrera would on paper make sense for them.
Melky almost certainly gets a qualifying offer from the Jays. That and commanding a salary for at least 4 years should take the Mets out of it. On paper he and Murph sound like a pretty good 1-2 punch but neither have much base running ability . Plus any real addition would mean Murphs exit so the question would be is who would the Mets prefer. Both with below avg defense. I’m also a big believer in Brandon Nimmo and I think Cabrera compares perfectly to what Nimmo can be just with better defense , more walks and may be more power
Yeah Nimmo has more upside although his strikeouts at the lower classes cause some concern. Cabrera is getting the qualifying offer and the Mets apparently have stated they are not going to raise their payroll. Given that information I thought Cabrera might offer the Mets a decent upgrade over Eric Young in the outfield. He comes with baggage and deficiencies but he likes New York and I wondered whether the Mets could grab him at 3/36 or 4/45 after last years QO disasters. The Mets probably could not do that anyways but I think that would be a pretty good bet for the Melk-Man’s 30-32/33 year old seasons. Somehow they need to lengthen the lineup to give their young pitches a chance.
Basically Rasmus wants to play somewhere where winning is a low priority. What a loser to still be ragging on the Cardinals. Sorry for expecting you to behave like a professional baseball player
Perfect for the Mets.
Sounds like Rasmus needs to go to the Rays
I don’t think it is going to take long for the Cubbies to be connected to a discounted Rasmus. Cubs do not have a center fielder and maybe Rasmus would fit well into that young lineup. Give me some of this action:
2B-Alcantara
C- Russell Martin
1B- Rizzo
RF- Soler
LF – Bryant
CF – Rasmus
SS- Castro
3B- Baez
I think the Cubs future is more:
2B-Castro
C- Russell Martin
1B- Rizzo
RF- Soler
LF – Bryant
CF – Alcantara
SS- Russell
3B- Bryant
If that’s the case (and I’m not saying it definitely is), they wouldn’t need Rasmus. They already have a low-avg, decent pop/speed guy with Alcantara, who has experience in the OF this year.
We’ve heard about the power, but Bryant must have great range to get to the 3rd base bag while covering all of left…
That Rasmus article made me spill coffee all over myself. Some might say these were excuses. It was the shift, strike zone, injuries, strike zone, lost his fav batting coach, and playing too much on the turf.
OTOH, it may have just been honesty by an intelligent player . I wish more players would do the same instead of just blowing fans off with cliches.
At what point are the environments really the problem, and not the player? St. Louis I could understand, that was a rough situation, but now Toronto is a problem too? It’s just coming off as excuses at this point from someone who has to be a little stronger mentally and not let every little thing that doesn’t go his way affect his mindset and drag him down.
Anybody else read that Rasmus interview in Boomhauer voice?