3:54pm: Hechavarria’s contract comes with a $3MM base salary if he makes the roster — a rather large base salary for a minor league pact — per Ken Davidoff of the New York Post (Twitter link). He could also earn a $1MM bonus for spending 100 days on the active roster and another $1MM for reaching 150 days on the active roster.
Feb. 18, 12:50pm: The Mets have now announced the signing.
Feb. 17: The Mets have signed infielder Adeiny Hechavarria to a minor league contract with an invitation to big league camp, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.
Hechavarria will have a chance to continue in New York, where he spent the last month of the 2018 season after the Yankees acquired him from the Pirates. As a member of the Yanks, Bucs and Rays in 2018, Hechavarria hit a modest .249/.279/.336 in 321 plate appearances. The subpar offensive numbers the 29-year-old Hechavarria registered were in line with his career totals, as he has only managed a .635 OPS in 3,004 PAs since debuting with the Blue Jays in 2012.
While offense has never been Hechavarria’s calling card, he has established himself as a defensive whiz. Over nearly 7,000 innings, almost all of which have come at shortstop, Hechavarria has accounted for 22 runs saved and a plus-13.1 Ultimate Zone Rating in the majors. Hechavarria’s glovework could help him earn a backup role behind Mets starting shortstop Amed Rosario, as Healey notes he has a legitimate chance to win a bench spot with the club.
Your move Philly.
Which will probably be Harper
More infielders? Wow
Preparing for the sell off and rebuild… a la padres 2015
Depth can only be a good thing… I think.
Man the Mets must really not like Guillorme
Luis is not due until 2020
He was up in 2018 and was in AAA most of the year.
He still needs a lot more seasoning for his bat
Hech is a really slick fielder. I’m curious why didn’t get a minimal MLB deal somewhere for just his glove alone.
I’m floored as to why the Pirates didn’t bring him back if a minor league deal was all it took.
I agree
Because he gets $5M if he is on the Mets ML roster for 150 days.. that’s days..not games.. and with that number he limits his own ML roster time and his trade value..
Teams carrying 13 pitchers these days don’t have room for the Rafael Belliard-type glove-only backup SS. You either need someone who can play 3 or 4 positions, or someone who can swing a 700 OPS, or a speedster. Hard to justify that D-only player on the 25 man roster
Teams dont give up roster spots for players who will compete for utility infielder roles. With most teams only using a 4 man bench, glove only players are not a great fit. I’m surprised Hech got a job before Iggy.
man so many infielders when are we going to see some outfield help
They got Broxton and McNeil is now an OF plus Davis and Blanco
Shocking that they didn’t want another 2B/3B instead.
Don’t sleep- he’s One of the best 3rd basemen in the game.
As 25th players go, Hechy offers a lot. SUPERB defense, he’ll drop a bunt, do lots of small stuff. He’ll help out.
True…but the Mets are ridiculously cheap and are poorly run, so I question if they would use him right and if they could get past the $3m base salary. They really need at least 1 more starter, though preferably a starter and a BP arm. Vargas was trash last year and they have zero depth in the minors for starters. Hellickson signed for half of that ($1.5m) IIRC. Too bad the Mets keep Mets’ing. Adding a 12th INF and ignoring their starting staff needs.
I think it’s hilarious how the Mets keep signing old players. Typical
Ummm… I don’t consider 29 old. The thing is how many people can make the 25-man roster.
25, me thinks
29 isn’t old
It’s young on the Mets. Look at last year’s social security free agents.
Come in. Filling a roster with one dimensional players leads to ONE DIMENSIONAL play. What’s so hard to figure out.
So pound your fist on your chest. Once Philly signs Harper and Altanta signs Kimbrell you are facing a race to beat the Nationals.
Once Canp goes down (when?)!tue cookie crumbles.
Repeat of Mets history, now live.
And this is why 13 year olds shouldn’t be allowed on the internet
Braves resign Julio Franco
Would’ve preferred Jose Iglesias but Hech will do
Because batting average means everything. Gimme a break.
It’s not just batting average, but entire offensive capability.
Lack of contact ability, lack of getting on base, lack of power, etc.
OPS mentioned. Not BA.
And your point, Shea?
Your tram is screwed right out of the gate.
Enjoy.
Will forever remember this play for NYY in 2018 playoffs
https://twitter.com/Yankees/status/1047683782730383360?s=20
Plays elite defense with the best of them and bats .250
Of course you deleted your comment. Impressive with that defense, what?
Or are you finally speechless for once?
Edited again! Most men’s hands are tired from something else, not typing!
Nice glove work! From a Pirates fan, I was hoping he would resign back to the burgh. Either way, I hope he gets playing time in with the Mets. Good luck
This is actually a pretty good move for them. Pretty nice depth/bench piece
As odd as it may seem, they actually needed an alternative for SS if Guillorme wasn’t going to make the team. Lowrie hasn’t played SS in a few years and he was the only one after Rosario with experience there as the active roster currently sits.
I just wonder if this makes McNeil or Guillorme a trade chip for an outfielder.
If I could only hear Harry Caray say this guys name
Aww man I wanted him back on our bench 🙁
He could be useful in case of a Rosario injury, or maybe deadline trade bait…good signing
to whom needs a bell rung. lol.. batting average dont count anymore.. but.. if i get 35 hits all singles in 50 atbats. you get 9 hits in 50 atbats all home runs … who the help did better.. you or me ????
English please?
Horrible english aside I’ll answer your question. Given we have no idea how many walks occurred, I will assume 0.
You:
35 for 50 with 35 singles.
That’s a .700 obp and a .700 slug, so you have an OPS of 1.400. That’s insanely good. MVP caliber.
Me:
9 for 50 with 9 hrs.
That’s a .180 obp with a .720 slug, so I have an even .900 OPS. Still very good. All-star caliber.
Objectively from an offensive standpoint only and removing the context of our performance, you had the better stretch. So a poor example on your part if you are trying to imply I had the better one.
The OPS is good but the HR pace is unsustainable and a .180 OBP isn’t all-star caliber. Player 1 by a long shot. Get on base and let a player who has a higher than .180 OBP knock him in.
The scenario is ridiculous. one guy is hitting .700 and another guy hitting homers at the best rate ever. The first guy will score more runs and likely drive in more too, since he is on base almost all the time. I have to go with player 1
This dude is worth more than a minimum
The update maxs him out at $5M. Now the signing makes sense.
Didn’t see him much last year, but I hear he can play some D. Earlier in the off-season the Yanks were toying with bringing him back until Didi gets back. They didn’t cause he can’t hit. If he makes the roster I see him more as a late inning defensive replacement or to give Rosario a day off here and there. There’s so may ?? with our team this off-season. We really dont know what the outfield makeup is going to be yet. Health is always a concern out there. Conforto seems ready for a good year. I’m not a big Nimmo fan as an everyday player. Lagares/Broxton in Center. I dont see a lot of power in the outfield at all, and thats an issue. We’re banking on a rookie to hit homers in his first year. I’m struggling to see how we’re going to drive runs in consistently. If we can’t play small ball well, we could be in a heap of trouble regardless of how good our pitching might be.
I’m not high on Rosario. Hech is a decent stop-gap until the Yanks release Tulo and the Mets can grab him for the league minimum. And this is coming from a Mets fan.
Then why didn’t they get Tulo from the start, huh?
I will give you a hint. He wanted to play for a winning team , even if it meant less playing time. If the Yankees release him, he will sign for another winning team.
Get the picture?
Honestly, I like Rosario. He hustled all year long, learned to drive the ball a bit, picked up some really good experience on the base paths, played solid defense and never made any waves and kept a solid attitude even when he struggled. It wouldn’t shock me to see 12-15 hr, 35 doubles, 85 runs, 30 steals and .265 average. He plays solid defense and a very affordable contract.
1 less infield option for the Padres, a day after Moustakas signed.
Wow! His OBP is awful
OBP, OB schlmee; his defense is SPECTACULAR!
They couldn’t have kept Wilmer?
Wilmer gets a ton of unwarranted hate. He rakes against lefties and he can be a decent bat off of the bench. Admittedly he’d lose in a foot race against nearly every beer vendor and his defense is rough…but that’s why he is a utility guy and not a starter.
And TJ Rivera moves further down the infielders depth chart.
Gavin moves further down because TJ wasn’t a shortstop.
Still think Marwin Gonzalez would be s great Mets’ signing. Outfield and infield coverage all around.