Free-agent outfielder George Springer could be the No. 1 offseason target for the Mets, according to SNY’s Andy Martino, who writes that the longtime Astro “remains heavily in the mix.” Meanwhile, Martino hears that the Mets are more aggressively going after catcher James McCann than fellow backstop J.T. Realmuto.
Springer would join an already loaded Mets outfield that includes Michael Conforto, Brandon Nimmo, Jeff McNeil and Dominic Smith as potential options for 2021. Nimmo was the only member of that group to line up in center field last season, though he struggled to minus-five Defensive Runs Saved and a minus-4.1 Ultimate Zone Rating over 308 1/3 innings there. Conversely, Springer posted six DRS with a minus-0.4 UZR across 338 innings, and he has typically performed well at the position since he first debuted there in 2014.
Of course, anyone who signs Springer wouldn’t be doing so primarily because of his defense. Rather, that team would be adding him on account of the immense impact Springer has made with his bat. This past season was the latest tremendous offensive effort for the 31-year-old Springer, who slashed .265/.359/.540 (146 wRC+) with 14 home runs in 222 plate appearances.
The Mets seem to have a bigger need behind the plate than in their outfield, as Wilson Ramos and Robinson Chirinos are free agents. The most established catcher on their roster is Tomas Nido, who owns a woeful line of .197/.234/.319 (46 wRC+) in 270 MLB plate appearances. That suggests the team will upgrade from outside the organization in the coming months. McCann, who’s coming off an impressive season, should cost far less than Realmuto, but he won’t be easy to acquire for the Mets and deep-pocketed owner Steve Cohen. At least six teams have shown interest in McCann early this offseason, so there will be plenty of competition to sign him.
If they really wanna make a splash they should sign Realmuto.
A splash isn’t necessarily the smartest or most responsible move. McCann would give them more flexibility to address their numerous other needs
I agree. MCann has a younger “body” than Realmuto and you don’t need a catcher who needs to Convert to a DH or First Baseman after year 2 or 3 of a 4 or 5 year deal.
Younger Body? How do you know this? Intimately?
I don’t think Cohen bought this team to be was “responsible” financially. The truth is, we probably need TWO catchers and allow Nido to be play every day at AAA.
Molina for 2 years AND McCann for 3 or Realmuto for 4+ with an eye on DH/3b/1b and/or LF down the line? It’s not crazy, he came up a shortstop.
Catcher
Rh CF
Sp #2
Sp #4
Lh closer
Defensive IF utility than can produce.
Dependable 8th inning righty that allows Lugo to stay in rotation.
Minor league depth with players that actually have mlb experience who aren’t 35+.
A few thoughts:
Isaiah Kiner-Filafa c/infielder who can hit a little.
See what Mallex Smith has. It wasn’t long ago that he was a threat on the bases and with his glove. Still young.
Sal Perez – catcher Royals for Nimmo+
Contreras/Bryant/Lester from the Cubs for Davis/Matz/Nido/Mauricio and Kilorme.
Is Profar a free agent?
Is Haniger healthy yet?
Didi Gregorius?
How about Maikel Franco for 3b from the Royals?
…
Awful
Sorry to crush your dreams but, Mallex Smith has never been better than awful with the glove. Trading Nimmo + for Salvador Perez would possibly be worse than trading Kelenic for Diaz. Haniger isn’t going anywhere and Maikel Franco is not an upgrade at all.
After typing all that out, I’m convinced you’re a Yankees fan trying to make Mets fans look clueless.
Problem is with JT, once he moves off catcher his value fizzles. His bat instantly becomes mediocre at first or left or third. A huge amount of his value is tied up in prime defense at a prime position. I don’t wanna be paying 25 million a year for a 110 OPS+ first baseman.
Hey buddy can you share with the rest of us what your smoking. Cause man talk about day dreaming.
Catchers tend to hit better once moved from behind the plate.
I don’t know why every team’s fan thinks the Royals are moving Salvador Perez for peanuts. Perez is not going anywhere. Nimmo plus is a start but no where near a finish.
Maikel Franco though, that is a different story.
Uhhhhhhhhh no… Why would we need Maikel Franco? And there is absolutely no reason why the Cubs would do that deal. Matz has zero value.
At 24thekid, nope, lifelong Mets fan. Still have the ‘’73 Topps Mays card, which I got the year it came out, btw. (Still have the Ryan Mets card, too.)
The list above was for discussion, so thanks for the quality input.
Sal Perez is a stud at catcher and coming up on a big contract push. The Royals WILL move him. It won’t be long before people outside the AL Central and fantasy baseball know who he is. His bat plays whether he is catching or not.
Being a Mets fan in a Philly area, I see a lot of their games (Kruk is the most entertaining color announcer today!) and never understood the bad wrap on Franco. He always played hard, worked hard, respected his manager and stayed out of trouble. Hitting out of the 7 and 8 holes, he may have been one of the most productive hitters in the NL out of those spots. The problem in Philly is, well, it’s Philadelphia. He’s not going to hit .280, but he would allow us to move Davis and teams are wanting him. I like Davis, I really do, but he, along with Nimmo, Rosario and Smith, are the biggest trade chips we have to swap for pitching and CF if we don’t land Springer.
If I’m mistaken in Smith, ok. I just remember him making highlight reel catches and being in the top 10 in steals with the Rays. The Mets have lacked a true havoc making sb threat forever. I still think Mallex Smith is valuable as a 4th or 5th outfielder and late inning pinch runner. If he helps us win 3 games with his legs, those 3 games could make a difference in the NL East.
At cosmo2, you really think Realmuto’s bat is subpar outside of catcher? Just asking for discussion.
I’m not an eyechart stat junkie and would rather trust what I see. With 700 plate appearances (which is more likely if he he’s multi-positional), he’s very capable of consistent .300/20/90/15+ steal with 40 doubles and solid walk to k splits. I think he gets even better as a hitter with fewer games at catcher.
The Mets already signed Mallex Smith to a FA deal…
Matz has value to any organization with actual pitching coaches. Or maybe just a quality team therapist.
I’m sure he has NEVER struggled on any baseball diamond in his life until he reached year 2 at the major league level. He’s shellshocked. He’s in his own head. He’s always been an emotional player and I think he’s spiraling. If the problem is that he won’t embrace coaching advice from anyone. It his father (which has been reported), then he needs to go ASAP.
But if anyone truly believes he can be righted, and I think he can be, then he has value. A pitching coach who doesn’t bury his head in binders with any semblance of pitching mechanics and motivational abilities, can turn Matz around pretty quickly. The kid has to iron out his mechanics and trust and locate his offspeed stuff. I just don’t think it happens with the Mets, but believe it can somewhere else. He’s young, lefthanded, throws 96 with good movement on his breaking pitches. Any QUALITY pitching coach should be willing to take a chance on 200 innings following an actual spring training. Matz as a #5, IF he can right himself, is a comeback player of the year candidate. But it can’t be with the Mets.
Yes, the Mets signed Mallex Smith to a minor league deal earlier this offseason. They didn’t need to trade for him as he was waived by his last team.
Jon Lester is a free agent. If the Mets want him they can have him for $$$ or maybe just $ at this point of his excellent career.
Doesn’t Perez have a ridiculously friendly team deal from maybe 2ish years ago? There is a near zero chance he gets moved for anything other than an overpay. McCann is the answer for a 1-2yr deal. Bring in another veteran catcher for backup….glove first or bat first, it really is a crapshoot. Realmuto should be an option only if the market is lukewarm and/or he’d consider a bit more AAV to not add that extra year or two that make his contract more of a risk..
I think a realistic but still nice off-season would be Springer on a fair dail, McCann on a 1-2yr deal, trade for a #3 that could be a salary dump to limit the prospects going back. They also need 2-3 RP arms, though it’ll be interesting if they go more TB or more defined roles. Moving Lugo back to a 1-2 inning elite RP is basically required, so their starting pitching needs to perform.
Andre: really? Where did you hear this? There might be a vague notion that a younger player moved of the position has a bit less wear and tear and thus hits better(but I’ve never seen definitive proof of this). But a guy who is already 30 isn’t gonna be a better hitter in 3 or 4 years because of a change and it would be dumb to count on such a thing. Plus the Mets already have 2 young first baseman and left fielders aren’t hard to come by. JT’s value is at catcher.
He won’t be sub-par, he’ll just not be worth anywhere near the same money.
Nimmo is much better than Perez. No way Perez is worth Nimmo plus anything.
24TheKid – That’s it, blame that bad deal proposal on Yankee fans because you can’t admit a Mets fan can make a bad proposal. Well I just came from the comment board for the article on the Reds shortstop situation, and there were several bad deal proposals there, none from Yankee fans. I see dozens of bad deal proposals for every bad deal proposal from a Yankee. Fact is, almost all deal proposals are bad, and very few of them come from Yankee fans. That’s a fact. What you’re insinuating is a lie.
Take your tears to twitter.
Mauricio is our SS, as early as second half of ‘21, if there is minor league baseball. Send one of the other SSs to Cleve in a 3-way that nets us Carrasco. Include Nimmo the deal and we get another SP from the third team. McNeil is our 2B, Smith is our LF, Davis is our 3B.
That’s some brutal left side defense.
I actually agree with a Mets fan? Only in 2020
Just bc they get mccan it doesn’t mean that’s their biggest signing
J.T. Realmuto should be priority #1 for the Mets. They need a catcher more than any other position. Signing Realmuto not only gets them the top backstop in the free agent market but also the premier catcher in all of MLB. As a bonus, it keeps Realmuto away from a prime AL East adversary in Philadelphia along with their local rival in NYC.
Pitching should be their primary need. After DeGrom its a question mark. Sign Bauer then target Springer.
As the adage goes, you can never have too much pitching in MLB. That said, last I checked Marcus Stroman is slotted in nicely behind Jacob deGrom as a solid #2 after accepting their QO while the Mets have zilch for either to throw to behind the plate. The Mets priority should be C, then SP and then CF.
Fangraphs has the Mets as the number 1 pitching staff now! They need a catcher, centerfielder,and relief pitcher.
thats impossible, right now its DeGrom, Stroman, Lugo, Matz, Peterson No way anyone could consider that good much less #1
I don’t know about Stroman as a #2. I’d like him a lot more as a #4 or better yet, #5!
1 deGrom
2 Bauer
3 Snell or Odorizzi
4 Stroman
5 Peterson
This moves Lugo back to his dominant 7th inning or 2+ inning stints.
I like Peterson a lot, but in year 2 he won’t be facing ridiculous 60 man rosters and high A/AA hitters.
Unlike years past, I hope we stop depending on ‘reclamation projects’ like Wacha or wishful thinking, throwback performances like Porcello and Familia.
Bottom line is, we need SIX healthy, productive starting pitchers to compete. Forget about Syndergaard. If/when he comes back, it’ll be out of the bullpen – that’s right, future closer, you are reading it here first!
Syndergaard has the closer’s mentality. He wants to strike everyone out and can be unhittable until the 3rd time through the lineup. He typically only has one bad inning per game and it’s rarely the first. I just think if he wanted to, he could let triple digits fly three times a week, 10-20 pitches a day. Would he accept it? Doubtful. But when he comes back, he’s going to be on a light pitch count any way. I’m sure he’ll always want to be a starter, but just imagine if he decided he wanted to be the best closer in the game and play more than once a week?
You Met fans are going to force White Sox fans to quit living in a make believe world. Maybe they finally realize McCann is history.
Snell v. Odorizzi is uhm….aiming high, obviously more for the former than the latter. I think an Odorizzi type is much more of an option.
deGrom
Bauer
Stroman
Odorizzi/guy w a $$$ contract
Matz/someone else
Peterson
Syn in the pen or as an opener for a few games in the 2nd half of the season. I really would prefer Stroman as the #4 bc his ceiling is a mid=level #2, #3 is a solid year, and #4/#5 is his floor. I hope he bounces back to how he was in TOR, not how he has been w. the Mets.
Trevor Williams was just cut…I wonder if they could take a flyer on him and see him out of the BP or long-relief? John Gray is a dark horse option if COL non-tender him.
The need pitching more than catcher. In fact teams have shown they could win with a bad catcher as long as he could defend
It seems like everyone thinks the Wilpon’s still own the Mets. In reality it sounds like Cohen will spend whatever it takes to improve them. Not just throw money around. Realmuto offers leadership, great arm,great receiver, solid hitter,right handed batter,good base runner and athletic enough to move to another pos. when necessary. Only negative is having to lose their #1 draft pick.
How many #1 picks make a difference within 5 years, if at all?
IMHO, drafts are very over rated if you have good scouting. The minors (and history!) are loaded with failed #1 picks and players who never had any kind of impact. The majors, on the other hand, are stockpiled with All Stars who were NOT #1 draft picked.
I have always believed that if you can trade an unproven propect with zero major league experience for a PROVEN mlb performer in his prime, you do it every time.
The days of players staying with one organization from draft to retirement are dinosaur dreams. You trade minor league players when their value is highest UNLESS you feel they are cornerstones for building a champion.
DeGrom is a cornerstone.
I think you can put Alonso, McNeil and Conforto in that category for us. Anyone else is a piece of the puzzle (albeit important pieces) and any piece can and should be moved for championship cornerstones. What wins championships? A dominant pitching staff and the willingness to add the pieces needed to fill it.
Damn, keep missing my ‘s’ key. Sorry.
Generally speaking, a team won’t lose a #1 pick these days when signing a free agent who was tagged with a qualifying offer. The exception is a club with multiple #1’s, in which case they would forfeit the one higher down on their draft board. The Mets would lose their #2 pick by signing J.T. Realmuto. If Steve Cohen really splurged this offseason and also signed Trevor Bauer the Mets would then lose their #3 pick. George Springer would cost them a #4 pick and so on. The other consideration is the loss of $500k of international signing bonus dollars when signing a tagged player. For more specifics: m.mlb.com/glossary/transactions/qualifying-offer
I would not sink that kind of money in a catcher. I’d sign McCann and spend my money on Bauer and Springer.
Your right on but Bauer will want too much $ for a middle of the rotation guy, I think they should look at other pitching options including RP and SP
Bauer is a “middle of the rotation guy”???
Yes, Bauer is a middle of the rotation guy. He has six full seasons and one shortened season (2020) to draw upon. In five of those full seasons, he’s been average or slightly above. He’s only been a top of the rotation guy in 2018 (27 starts) and 2020 (only 11 starts).
In 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2019, his numbers are that of a #3 starter. Further, his 2020 was likely an aberration, given it’s sample size and absurd outlier BABIP (.216 vs his career of .296).
nooooo. you give up picks and international $ if you sign a FA offered a QA. plue McCann is a very good C, can hit and no picks, & less $
Just what the Mets need yet another outfielder…..
I agree but he already said he doesn’t want to go to any New York team
McCann is a Wilpon like signing. Realmuto would be a Cohen like signing.
Springer and McCann would be a pretty big splash, although I’ll stick by my prediction that McCann will be viewed as a bust a year on.
Springer + McCann + Solid mid-rotation starter > Realmuto/Bauer
Cohen can easily afford JTR.
Springer is going to Jays.
Reamulto would be Cohens only big signing..
McCann elsewhere
I’d take McCann at $10-12 million per season for 3-4 seasons over Realmuto at $25 million per season over 5-6 seasons honestly.
Signing McCann instead of Realmuto could allow the Mets to throw more money at their pitching staff. And I think that would be a wise move.
McCann’s market is huge. He will be signing for more than 10-12 a year. I think it’ll be closer to 15. Realmuto will not get what he wants. He’ll probably have to settle for 20.
I would hope the Mets put their best, doable offer on the table to Realmuto with a deadline to accept. Forget the long, drawn out, pawn-takes-pawn-check scenario with free agency. Players and agents KNOW where they want to go before this all starts. All the other teams involved are patsies used to drive up contracts.
The Blue Jays are in on everyone because they have good, young talent and some strong pieces in place in a ridiculously competitive division. They are smart to want to go for it all, right now. Boston is down. Yankees have questions. Rays are an impressive anomaly. Orioles are non-factors. Jays are surely a wild card contender with a few more moves.
Who knows. After being banned from their country in 2020, they just might be looking to bring a contender to an area like Las Vegas, Tennessee or Charlotte in 2021.
I’ll take the field over George Springer going to the Blue Jays. I’d rank the Red Sox, White Sox, Mets and Astros as more likely destinations for Springer than Toronto.
Fair enough, but why?
The Blue Jays A.) seem heavily interested, B.) have the money to spend, and C.) Springer seems like kind of a perfect fit in Toronto based upon their current needs (a good defensive CF, another middle of the order bat, a veteran team leader/clubhouse presence.)
I see the Jays as an excellent fit for him, personally.
@HBan22
Springer is a great fit for Toronto, but that doesn’t mean it is a great fit for him. Nothing you listed suggested it being a good fit for Springer…just why Springer is a good fit for Toronto.
Does Springer want to play in Canada? Not every free agent does.
Indeed, I listed why I thought Springer would be a good fit for Toronto and not vice versa. I’m sure we’ll see in the coming weeks whether Springer agrees with us or not!
The Jays won’t even play in Canada, between Covid and their desire for a mew stadium on the grounds of the current stadium…
COVID-19 likely won’t be an issue throughout 2021 as it was in 2020 with numerous vaccines showing promise and some potentially ready for initial distribution later this month. A new stadium in Toronto probably won’t be a factor for Springer even in the event he signs a 5-year deal. Stadiums take time to build and the current proposals are still in the early planning stages and hardly a sure thing.
I like the Reds Sox because they need a CF to replace fellow free agent Jackie Bradley Jr. and a bat to replace former RF Mookie Betts in their lineup. Springer is a perfect fit for Boston in CF because it keeps Alex Verdugo in RF and Andrew Benintendi in LF were they profile best defensively. CF has been Springer’s primary defensive position and he can stay there with the Red Sox. Springer also has a geographical connection to Boston as a native of New Britain, CT. who remained a high profile athlete in the state through his college days at the University of Connecticut. His family still lives 90 minutes from Boston. Springer was also pals with Red Sox manager Alex Cora in Houston.
The White Sox are also an excellent fit for Springer but it would be as a RF in Chicago with Gold Glove phenom Luis Robert set in CF for at least the next 7 years. The White Sox are a notch ahead of the Blue Jays in talent. They also reside in a division more easy to dominate than what the Red Sox or Blue Jays figure to do in the AL East with powerhouse teams in New York and Tampa. Like the Blue Jays, the White Sox could easily accommodate Springer’s salary demands which figure to be half of what Chicago was willing to pay Manny Machado just two winters ago when they weren’t yet contenders.
The Mets have had a need for an impacting CF for some time now and they finally have an owner who isn’t handicapped by financial issues. If the Springer negotiations go into a full-out bidding war my money would be on new owner Steve Cohen.
The Astros advantage for Springer is with a comfort level that can’t be matched by any other rival for his services. He likes Houston and has endeared himself to the city with his production and community work. He would remain the Astros CF for the foreseeable future and like the White Sox in the AL Central, the Astros have an easier path to the postseason in the AL West than what the Blue Jays or Red Sox face in the AL East.
Aaron, you know better than ‘hoping’ or heaven forbid actually believing that your white Sox will end up with Springer. First Uncle Jerry will not offer any competitive bid for him, and second, they don’t need another RH bat. Think Brantley.
I believe Jerry Reinsdorf will consider ‘splurging’ this offseason. He’ll be 85 in February and his current stacked White Sox roster figures to be his last hurrah for another baseball championship on the southside of Chicago. J.R. might also feel compelled to appease a fan base that wasn’t overly thrilled with HIS choice of long time friend Tony La Russa as the new White Sox manager.
As I stated in my initial comment, Reinsdorf signed off on the Manny Machado $250MM bid two offseasons ago that actually contained a higher AAV than the winning Padres bid which provided more guaranteed dollars over a longer 10 year period of time. George Springer will be ‘fortunate’ to receive a FA contract for have that value and for half those years.
The White Sox are primed to be legitimate World Series contenders over the next 5-10 years with a mostly young roster that would benefit from two holes being filled, namely another veteran TOR along with a RF. Ideally the White Sox would add a RF who also hit left-handed to help balance out a lineup that dominated southpaws but struggled mightily against RHP. That said, Springer is far and away the best outfielder in this year’s FA class, one who would also profile nicely in RF. Springer also has outstanding splits versus LHP and RHP. The White Sox could settle for a lesser player in free agency who bats left-handed and could handle RF, namely Joc Pederson or Adam Eaton. They could also pursue a trade for somebody like Charlie Blackmon or Jason Heyward who have prohibitive contracts and would likely cost the White Sox little in the way of assets if they agreed to take on the majority of their remaining salaries.
As for Michael Brantley, he would be an excellent fit for the White Sox batting order as lefty stick who hits for a high BA/OBP and rarely strikes out. Unfortunately, Brantley can only play LF or DH, two positions were the White Sox have surplus depth with the likes of LF Eloy Jimenez, top prospect Andrew Vaughn, 1B Jose Abreu and C Yasmani Grandal when he is not behind the plate. Slugging C Yermin Mercedes would also be a great DH option in 2021 if the White Sox elect to carry 3 catchers and they decide to play the service time game with Vaughn early on.
I believe the Sox window is only as long as Giolito hangs around. Once he becomes a free agent, he’s going to sign with a west coast team. Effectively that will slam shut the Sox window for contention.
The White Sox have a legitimate shot at extending Lucas Giolito. They did it earlier with ace Chris Sale and also with Jose Quintana. Their chances to sign Giolito also improved a measure with the hiring of his long time mentor Ethan Katz to be the new White Sox pitching coach.
That said, where is is written that a team’s window to contend closes with the departure of one pitcher, even an ace? How many TOR’s have the Indians traded in the past few years? How have they managed to remain factors in the American League and AL Central?
Unlike Cleveland, the White Sox have managed to lock up their young core, one that includes numerous perennial All-Star caliber players and a few that have MVP potential. They also managed to add to that young core by signing important veterans like Dallas Keuchel and Yasmani Grandal last offseason and are poised to continue that tend this winter via free agency or trades.
You spend far too much time trolling the White Sox and too little worrying about your beloved Cubs, a team who’s window appears on the verge of being “slam shut” come 2021 or 2022 depending on Jed Hoyer’s strategy as their new PBO this offseason and next.
any of these owners coulf afford all top 10 guys combined. that doesn’t mean they should or will spend to get them.
I think Springer is using the Jays to drive up his contract. He signs with a high profile team that wants to contend. The Jays weren’t even allowed to enter Canada! Don’t rule out Springer returning to Houston.
With McNeil likely to play second, and hopefully Smith slotting into DH/1B, the outfield isn’t really crowded. Springer is a perfect fit for the Mets.
There may not be a DH & Alonso will be at 1B, so Smith will likely be in LF. If Springer is a perfect fit, it would be as a replacement for Nimmo, who can then be traded for nothing. Ok Frankly I think they’re better off prioritizing Bauer & McCann than Springer
I think there will be the DH in both leagues, but we’ll see.
Nimmo traded for nothing? That’s ridiculous. He’s a good player.
I think Bauer is overrated.
I worry that Bauer regresses to a #3/#4 and he is a nuisance off of the field. His social media presence def. attracts some scrutiny. He seems like kind of a douchey guy, but if he is your team’s douchey guy…AND you are winning, I think he’d be good. I just don’t trust him across 5+ years. If Cohen has an open wallet…then sure, go big…but this is a really unique off-season and there may be some much better deals for some #2/#3 guys for less years and/or as salary relief. Trades complicate the picture, but I think the Mets are a big fish now, but they still need to be smart about how they spend their $$. I think one of the biggest advantages will be having more flexibility to cut bad money (like Cano), but maybe they go full 2000s Yankees if the market is way down bc ~1/2 of the teams are looking to slash payroll.
I would not sign any Astros player. Unless you need someone to take out the trash CAN.
stupid comment
So cute.
Springer has to be the #1 priority for the Mets. Springer and Bauer and Mets have a great off-season. Since Bauer is adamant about 1 year deals, allows the Mets to have space to keep Conforto and Syndergaard long term as well.
I don’t think they need to get McCann or JT. They can be perfectly fine with someone who is a defensive catcher like Roberto Perez who won’t cost much in a trade.
I’d rather the Jays sign Realmuto than Springer. Not that they couldn’t use him too, but it’s not every day that the best player at his position in all of baseball comes available on the free agent market. When he does, you should go after him. I’m thinking the Blue Jays have around $40M to spend this off-season. Using MLBTR’s yearly average salary predictions, this is the off-season I’d try to put together if I was their GM (Ross Atkins):
J.T. Realmuto – $25M
Jackie Bradley, Jr. – $8M
Brad Hand – $7M
Joe Musgrove – $4 (acquire in trade)
That checks in at $44M. Then I’d move Randal Grichuk back to RF, Teoscar Hernandez to DH, Vladdy, Jr. back to 3B, Rowdy Tellez back to 1B, and non-tender Travis Shaw (I know it looks like a lot of moving around, but it’s mostly just putting people back to where they used to be and where they belong). Shaw was projected to earn somewhere in the $4-5M range in arbitration, so that savings would offset the $4M I went over in free agents above.
I think this is a very realistic scenario for them and if they could pull it off, I think it would be a really good off-season for the Blue Jays.
When a person signs in another country you have to take into account a lot more than you would than straight dollars such as taxes which i think is considerably more/ Also the weather and moving a family to another country and different laws and regulations which could play a factor. For some people, there are smaller things such as with Jose Reyes where he wanted out of Toronto ASAP because he couldnt bring his pitbulls up there as they are illegal as well as with Covid for example with travel restrictions. So it may take more for toronto to lure top free agents up there than say Texas or NY or PA. Also if the family decides to stay in the us you would have to factor in travel costs.
Yes NY and PA taxes can be pretty high i dont believe they are as high and the dollar is usually worth more here than in canada equivalents. This is why some of the bigger free agents will take a little less money to go to texas teams and potentially florida if they would spend month because the taxes are soooo lenient. Also not sure how the marketing is up there compared to say NY which makes a difference in extras such as endorsements and such.
Mark Buehrle had the pitbulls, not Reyes. Both loved playing in Toronto. Reyes in particular cried when he was sent to Colorado as part of the Tulo trade.
For the record, Mark Buehrle had 4 dogs when he was a member of the Blue Jays, one of which was a pit bull and banned in Ontario. He also had an issue with Slater in Miami but fought the Dade County ban on the breed. Buehrle also had the option of keeping his pooch at home in a nearby Florida county, something that was far less practical pitching for the Blue Jays in Toronto. He would have had to reside in Buffalo which was a 2+ hour daily commute.
Going after the best player has worked out well for the Phils. Granted, Harper has been as expected, but they need a lot more.
Clr, Vlad Jr doesn’t belong at 3B and never will regardless of his weight. He is a 1B/DH.
Sure
Being a Mets fan I guarantee you I will start crying if we sign springer lol I’m serious, we already have a solid core, he will only be that finishing touch just like cespedes was, obviously we gonna need more starting pitching and a catcher at that…
Start crying then.
What about Springer to Boston? He is from the area. Take up the slack Mookie left.
The Red Sox have the #4 pick in the draft this year, so they don’t want to give up the #4 pick in the 2nd round to sign a player with a QO attached. One thing Chaim Bloom is trying to do is rebuild their farm system after Dombrowski gutted it to win the World Series. Bloom did a great job in Tampa drafting talent so I think the Red Sox will stand pat (not sign a QO player) and keep their high draft pick and their full international signing bonus money too. (That also gets reduced when you sign a QO player).
Springer, McCann, Hand, Ordonez, Kim,
25. + 10. + 8. + 12. + 8 = 63
Trade- Rosario,, plus, plus for a controlled SP . This could include taking back a bad contract from a small market team
McCann will get closer to $15M/yr than $10M if you ask me. His market is robust so someone sill have to overpay him.
Sign McCann, Springer.
Trade for Lynn or Snell
Just right Sir
Plus sign a good reliever and call it a day.
I like this except i would also sign maybe Sandy Leon or another catcher as well as they shouldnt cost a ton and would be an upgrade to Nido and provides some kind of depth as right now i think our next catcher highest played before covid was single A
C’mon everyone I mean EVERYBODY knows Bartolo Calon just by size alone would create the biggest SPLASH!!! Amiright?
The Mets don’t need Springer. It’ll be a total waste of money for them. I would prioritize LeMahieu to play 2B, make a deal happen between MLB players and prospects for Colorado SS Trevor Story (extend him) and Charlie Blackmon. Then go out again, forget about Realmuto, and sign both; McCann and Yady Molina. After that….get a few reliable inexpensive arms…..Tanaka, Paxton could very well be those two to pair with Stroman, Matz, DeGrom, and Synderguaard. Peterson goes to Colorado as part of the deal and so does Rosario, and Gimenez as well plus others of course.
You think Yadi and McCann are gonna sign knowing they’re only playing part time?
Tfp78
No worries- Yadi is going back to St. louis
I appreciate your thoughts on this but there are a ton of faults with what you are trying to accomplish.
So you want one of McCann or Molina to sign knowing they will be the backup? Also what prospects are you going to trade to get Snell and Story. … there really is not much there after Gimenez and Peterson … also not sure if you have been a mets fan long but the biggest issue for the mets is depth depth and more depth. It seems like you want to trade all of what little depth and talent we have as depth. Also who is your 5th pitcher for about half the season while syndegaard is recovering for TJ assuming he comes back on time. Also I may be wrong but i think you made arguably one of the worst defenses even worse.
If we don’t need Springer why would we need Blackmon?
wow to4 there is so much wrong with your list of suggestions sooooooo much
Sure
First, don’t think Blackmon is a centerfielder and pushing late 30’s. He’s awesome, don’t get me wrong. I’d take him in right, Conforto in left and Springer in center every day of the week!
Peterson is under team controls and one of the few remaining prospects. He’s also left handed, which breaks up the rotation. He stays with us, especially since he still (I believe) has options. He can be used in long relief, spot starts and in the event if injury/quarantine even if the Mets load the rotation this off season.
Sign LeMahieu, Paxton, McCann, Molina.
Trade for Trevor Story, and Blake Snell.
Gimenez, Rosario and other prospects to Colorado for Story.
Peterson and other pitching prospects to Tampa for Snell.
1.LeMahieu 2B
2.Story SS
3.Blackmon RF
4.Alonso DH
5.Conforto CF
6.Davis 3B
7.Smith 1B
8.Molina C
9.McNeil LF
The Mets can easily sport that line up if the really wish to in 2021….Rotation?
1.DeGrom
2.Snell
3.Synderguaard
4.Matz
5.Stroman
You have the All Star 315 hitting Mcneil batting 9th, you clearly don’t watch baseball and the Mets would never trade both Rosario and Giminez in the same deal
Would you rather have him hitting ahead of Story? Or LeMahieu? I think the one that doesn’t watch baseball is you, because the #9 hitter, automatically becomes another lead off guy when you turn the order.
You think Yadi and McCann are gonna sign knowing they’re only playing part time?
Stroman is a fifth starter behind Matz. How old are you?
There is so much wrong with this. McNeil 9th? Conforto in CF? Relying on an injured Thor? And you wanna basically guy our farm system to do it all?
Syndergaard MIGHT be ready for the rotation in June or July. The Mets will showcase him for trade if he’s healthy. If they are contending without him, he’s a bonus and works out if the ‘pen unless needed due to injuries. Don’t count on Syndergaard because he probably still thinks lifting weights will heal him faster and rush his recovery knowing this is a contract year.
I still don;t think that team can beat the Dodgers!
Go right up the middle…McCann, Bauer & Springer. Once those 3 in the fold take the money you save not signing JTR and Cano get Odorizzi to sure up the rotation and ink Hand or Hendricks to plug the pen.
If they sign both Bauer & Springer, I believe the Mets with lose their 2nd, 4th and 5th round drafts picks this year (for signing 2 players with QO’s) and will have their international free agent pool reduced by over $1M too. For a team that doesn’t have much talent in their farm system, they would really be mortgaging their future by doing this. I’m not saying it’s unrealistic for them to sign both guys but it’s definitely not good for their chances to add young talent to their minor league system. They should only do this if they feel these guys could get them to the World Series this year. I’m not sure that’s the case as Atlanta and LA are clearly better even with Springer & Bauer on board.
Agreed but your only mortgaging 1 year and it will be another subpar drafting year due to COVID circumstances. Proper drafting won’t be back to normal until summer 2022.
Agreed but your only mortgaging 1 year and it will be another subpar drafting year due to COVID circumstances. Proper drafting won’t be back to normal until summer 2022. So take advantage of it.
Look at you Mets fans…… acting all Yankees and stuff…….
Mets fans before Cohen: “Yankees and Dodgers just buy championships.” Met fans after Cohen: “We want Realmuto/McCann, Bauer, Springer, Odorizzi…”
It is cool to have so much hope and excitement with a new owner. And while Springer is a huge upgrade, this team needs at least 1 catcher and 2 SPs to even think about competing.
It seems like the expectation is that Cohen is going to spend to try to win the world series in ’21. But I’ve also heard that he has a fairly keen sense of the entire organization as an owner. The Mets to me are an interesting team. They have all these great pieces that don’t seem to fit together to create a well functioning team. As a completely dispassionate fan from another team who doesn’t care who stays and who goes from the Mets, if I were in the Mets’ GM seat, I’d be using an increased budget towards something a little longer term than just the coming year. I would go into buyer/seller mode. Buy Springer, sell Conforto to bolster some upper minors depth especially on the mound. Explore markets for guys like Davis and Smith too. It’s hard to trade young controllable major leaguers, but if they are causing a log jam, wouldn’t you be best to turn it into something your system needs? I’d be trying to create more balance for ’22 and beyond.
While I CB do appreciate what your saying Alderson just recently said that their focus would be more to the FA side of things and not trade away talent already in the stable unless of course blown away by return value. The draft last year was only 5 rounds deep with a ton of FA minor leaguers that didn’t get drafted or evaluated properly. So my view is they will spend this first year of Cohen to compete and shift gears as they evaluate that talent they signed last year but couldn’t play because of COVID. A lot of players they wouldn’t have been able to draft last year because of later rounds were eliminated allowed them to go after whomever they wanted like a lot of teams did.
I think the second wildcard really makes it harder for teams to take their time. Every team in the NL East is in win-now mode. Even the Marlins (who I think are currently better than the Phillies). I don’t think the Mets are a few FAs away from a title. I don’t think they need a rebuild, but a two-year process makes more sense to me. And I agree that they should consider trading some pieces. There are a lot of redundancies on this team. Trade those pieces for greater needs. Good luck telling that to Met fans though.
I saw that too and I took it to mean they wouldn’t be trading from their minor league system to bolster the major league roster. I’m suggesting they trade from the major league roster to bolster the minor league system while using the free agent market to buy major league pieces that fit better either skill set wise or timeline wise. The other Mets article I saw suggested that their strategy for improving their minor league system was going to be to sign as many 6 year minor league free agents as possible. That’s not exactly the deepest end of the talent pool. Neither is the undrafted free agent pool when there is a $20k limit on the bonus.
There are a lot of redundancies on the team, I agree without a doubt and if I were in the seat I would certainly entertain ANY trade proposal…it never hurts to listen and if there is a fit then pull the trigger. You can get a lot of value in a Smith, Davis or Nimmo packaged with low level minor leaguers but I’m completely against giving away the shop like BVW did in the Cano trade.
He wasn’t the best evaluator of trade chips and the Mets got what they paid for which was an players agent who could sell his client to management with a smile while cashing that big check.
At Roll:
What you stated is pretty much exactly what Alderson and Cohen have both stated.
Clear logjams and fill the gaps throughout the organization. Build a competitor this year and a champion within 3-5. It’s not a rebuild, it’s a reconstruction with deadlines to deliver.
Very few talented prospects who didn’t get drafted by Round 5 ended up signing free agent deals. The only ones who did were college seniors who didn’t want to go back for the ‘do over’ year because of their age, so they signed for the $20K. This years draft will be loaded with talent as the better prospects decided not to sign a FA deal and will end up back in the draft again this year (if they are eligible to). That’s why signing QO players this year is more punitive because the draft will be deep and teams have to forfeit high draft picks to sign QO players.
At Von: I think a lot depends on whether or not the NL adopts a fulltime DH.
The Phils and Mets have both suffered from inexperienced managers and bad (or lack of) quality transactions.
Phils went all in a few times with hitters, have made some solid additions, but have failed miserably to address obvious pitching needs. They keep losing games 12-8 and, for some unknown reason, opposing teams keep trying to trick Harper instead of just making him beat them down and away.
In the Mets, who didn’t think we were loaded in pitching with deGrom, Syndergaard, Matz, Stroman, Porcello and Wacha? Heck, we let Wheeler go! Add to that the really good 2020 (crystal ball) seasons from Lugo and Peterson and Diaz who, on paper, was again dominant.
No one expected a total Mets pitching collapse.
Alonso rebounded from a dismal start to put up big power numbers.
Dom Smith, after treatment for sleep apnea, is turning into a big time clutch hitter. He just needs a position.
JD Davis is a consistent run producer who, like Smith, needs a regular position. If we can get Springer, I can live with Davis at third.
We have bats and a nice fantasy hitter lineup, but not enough quality defenders. They can’t drive in runs if they aren’t in the lineup.
We need spring training and guys working on defense at their starting positions.
Bat1126, the problem for us is that we can’t bat 11 and play Davis, Nimmo AND Smith in left at the same time!
If we don’t get a true 3b or 2b (assuming McNeil is one or the other), we need Davis’ rh bat at 3b. At the moment we only have TWO right quality handed hitters: Alonso and Davis, and one suspect in Rosario.
So where can we honestly plug in a quality rh’ed bat? Catcher and center. Short if we move Rosario. Replacing Davis doesn’t add a rh’ed bat.
The conundrum is that I don’t think the team wants to give up on Nimmo, Davis or Smith because they seem to be great kids, work hard and put the team first.
Sign Springer and JT; full year of Gimenez at SS, should be greatly improved D. I’d even platoon Guillorme and Davis at third, maybe. Then sign 2 mid rotation starters and Hand. Expense and risky but improves the D.
I’m not saying give up on these guys by any means. All I’m saying is you know their value and DON’T move them unless you get value for them. Other people on here are talking about moving them not me.
2B – McNeil
CF – Springer
RF – Conforto
1B – Alonso
DH – Smith
LF – Nimmo (can swap with McNeil)
3B – Davis
C – McCann
SS – Giménez
Now this would be the lineup I’d like to see on Opening Day. What I’m saying is we don’t have to be married to get JTR and use that savings to get pitchers to fill the rotation and the pen and today’s signing of May is a great start. Plus this lineup gives you a chance to move Rosario and get something back for the minor leagues.
The price on McCann is going up, the demand is there for a catcher! I can see him getting 4/60.
That’s insane, but I actually agree.
if this report is true me being a Phillies fan gives me a little bit of hope that we might be able to retain JT real muto we still have the Yankees praise and dodgers that are seem to be the main suitors competition for the Phillies plus the Mets
I would love to keep JT, but I’d also love to fill some of the other holes. The Phillies are easily a competitor if they just had a mediocre bullpen last year. They didn’t have 1 single reliable arm in that pen. Now losing Didi and JT, Phils are very far away and Middleton’s comments aren’t giving me any hope.
Conner, McNeil will probably be at 2B for most of the year, or 3B occasionally. But agree, the OF is still a bit crowded.
If we sign McCann, turning 31 in June, who catches our other 50+ games? We still need someone capable of producing from behind the plate for 50 or more games.
Granted, McCann spent the early part of his career with a pretty bad Tigers club, but the reality is that he’s been a solid catcher with good defensive numbers. But in today’s market, he might get a 3 or even 4 year deal. That being said, do we want McCann (31) for 3+ years or Realmuto (30) for 4+ years?
Why not go after both and not have to worry about catcher until 2026?
Can’t be spending 35 plus million at the catching position per year for the next 3 years.
Check Molina’s temperature and see if he’d accept a lesser role behind JTR or McCann….if he says yes you have your solution if not then look for a serviceable backup.
Realmuto is not getting 2019 money.
He’ll get $20MM+ a year for sure. McCann will be in the 11-13 neighborhood.