Though second baseman Daniel Murphy has been one of the Mets’ most consistent offensive performers over the past few seasons, the team has no plans to negotiate an extension with the 29-year-old during the season, reports ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin. While that wording would seem to leave open some possibility of a Spring Training extension, Rubin writes that the expectation is for New York to let Murphy walk as a free agent next offseason.
Dilson Herrera, acquired from the Pirates in the 2013 Marlon Byrd/John Buck trade, is the heir apparent for the Mets at second base. He batted a strong .323/.379/.479 between Class-A Advanced and Double-A in 2014, and he hit three homers to go along with a .220/.303/.407 batting line in an 18-game MLB cameo as well. Herrera, who turns 21 next week, seems likely to open the season at Triple-A and could be ready for a full-time gig in the Majors in 2016. The Mets also have Matt Reynolds and Wilmer Flores as potential second base options (should the team eventually find an alternative to Flores at shortstop).
Murphy told Rubin and other reporters that he’s willing to discuss an extension during the season and would love to remain with the club in the future, but his present focus is on the 2015 season. In fact, he said he didn’t even want to be involved in any theoretical extension discussions unless the talks become serious. Slated to earn $8MM in his final season of team control, Murphy said no multi-year deal was discussed while working to avoid arbitration.
If an extension isn’t in the cards, Murphy will be one of the most attractive second base options on the open market, assuming a typically strong season. Entering his age-30 season, he’ll be younger than competitors Howie Kendrick (32) and Ben Zobrist (35), and he has a better track record than comparably aged players such as Asdrubal Cabrera. Over the past four seasons, Murphy has batted .294/.333/.414 and averaged 10 homers and 15 steals per 162 games.
