Stop us if you’ve heard this one before: Mets infielder Jed Lowrie still isn’t close to making his 2019 debut, manager Mickey Callaway told Tim Healey of Newsday and other reporters Wednesday. Lower body injuries have kept Lowrie from playing this season after he joined the Mets on a two-year, $20MM contract over the winter. With the season now at the halfway point, Callaway doesn’t even seem willing to commit to Lowrie taking the field at all in 2019. Asked if he expects to see Lowrie this year, Callaway said: “That’s hard to say. There’s so much of the season left. We’ll just have to play that by ear.”
Mets Rumors
Todd Frazier Discusses Potential Trade
As a soon-to-be free agent on a team that appears to be going nowhere in the standings, third baseman Todd Frazier looks like a potential trade chip for the Mets. With the July 31 deadline exactly four weeks out, Frazier addressed his future Wednesday, telling Mike Puma of the New York Post: “If I get traded, OK. If not, I am glad to be here as a Met. I am doing something, so it’s always good to be wanted.”
Trades aren’t anything new to Frazier, who has been part of two deals since he started his career in Cincinnati in 2011. The Reds sent Frazier to the White Sox in December 2015, and just under two calendar years later, the Pale Hose dealt him to the Yankees around the 2017 trade deadline. Frazier then joined the Yankees’ crosstown rivals the ensuing offseason on his current deal – a two-year, $17MM guarantee which Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen negotiated on his behalf.
Van Wagenen was Frazier’s agent when the veteran changed New York franchises, but now BVW is in the unique position of potentially trading away a player whose payday he secured. Frazier’s still owed about $4.31MM on his deal, a pact which has been a mixed bag for the Mets. While Frazier endured a down, injury-shortened initial campaign with the Mets, the 33-year-old has rebounded in 2019 to slash .256/.335/.450 (111 wRC+) with 11 home runs in 236 plate appearances. Frazier has aided his cause with career-best strikeout, swinging-strike and contact rates.
Everyday third basemen could be difficult to find around the deadline, which may work in the Mets’ favor if they try to trade Frazier. Considering their upward trajectory, the Nationals don’t seem likely to deal Anthony Rendon. Otherwise, aside from Frazier, there’s a wide selection of trade possibilities who profile more as part-time players or utility infielders than full-time third basemen. Pablo Sandoval, Derek Dietrich, Jonathan Villar, Neil Walker, Eric Sogard and Tim Beckham are among them.
Carlos Gomez Elects Free Agency
Veteran outfielder Carlos Gomez elected free agency rather than accept an outright assignment from the Mets, per the International League transactions log. He was designated for assignment over the weekend.
Gomez, 33, ripped a trio of home runs in his brief reunion with the Mets — including a go-ahead three-run shot not long after being selected from the minor leagues. However, his overall body of work in his return to Queens, where he made his MLB debut as a 21-year-old back in 2007, proved underwhelming. In 99 trips to the plate, the two-time All-Star and former Gold Glover hit just .198/.278/.337 with 30 strikeouts.
Gomez had a solid season with the Rangers back in 2017, but his brief All-Star peak from 2013-14 is now a distant memory. Gomez batted a combined .284/.347/.491 with 47 homers, 74 steals and strong defense in that stretch, racking up 12.3 WAR along the way. Since that brilliant pair of seasons, he’s hit a combined .236/.311/.395 in 1863 plate appearances. He’s not the elite runner he once was, but Gomez still possesses above-average speed (79th percentile in average sprint speed, per Statcast) and is experienced at all three outfield spots, making him a reasonable minor league pickup for a team in need of outfield depth.
Zack Wheeler Rumors: Yankees, Braves, Brewers
Trades between the Yankees and Mets have been rare during the crosstown rivals’ histories. The clubs have made just 15 deals since 1966, in fact, but we might see No. 16 this summer. With the starter-needy Yankees pushing for a World Series and the Mets looking like non-contenders, the New York franchises could come together on a trade for soon-to-be free-agent right-hander Zack Wheeler this month. The Yankees are already known to like Wheeler, and the Mets wouldn’t be averse to sending him to the Bronx, Andy Martino of SNY.tv says.
The Mets are more focused on getting the best offer for Wheeler than where they’d trade him. But the Yankees are sure to face plenty of competition for Wheeler if they do make an earnest attempt to pull him in before the July 31 deadline. Martino names Atlanta and Milwaukee as just a couple other teams with interest in the 29-year-old. The Brewers were “enamored” of Wheeler’s upside as recently as last offseason, per Marc Carig of The Athletic (subscription link).
The heat-throwing Wheeler put on a show for an array of scouts Tuesday when he handled, of all teams, the Yankees. Wheeler fanned eight over 6 1/3 innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits and a walk. He’s still running an uninspiring 4.42 ERA through 114 frames this season, up significantly from last year’s 3.31. It hasn’t helped that Wheeler has pitched in front of a dreadful defense, though, and the rest of his output is far more promising than his simple run prevention numbers. Wheeler has struck out 9.71 batters per nine while walking 2.53, giving him an outstanding 3.71 K/BB ratio. He’s also inducing grounders at a 45.3 percent clip and infield flies 14 percent of the time – the latter of which ranks 13th among qualified starters.
Adding to Wheeler’s appeal, he’s on a $5.975MM salary that every contender should be able to afford. It appears he’ll join Giants left-hander Madison Bumgarner as one of the top two rental starters available in July, barring a miraculous Mets turnaround. The Mets have won two in a row, though they’re still just 39-47 and six games out in a jam-packed National League playoff race. Assuming New York elects to sell, dealing Wheeler would give the team a chance to replenish its lackluster farm system to at least some degree. The Mets just may be able to do that at the Yankees’ expense.
Dilson Herrera Opts Out Of Mets Contract
Infielder Dilson Herrera has opted out of his minor league contract with the Mets, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports. Herrera had been with the team since late November.
This ends Herrera’s second stint as a member of the Mets, who originally acquired him from the Pirates in a 2013 trade involving outfielder Marlon Byrd and catcher John Buck. Herrera was a well-regarded prospect at the time who continued climbing up lists after the deal, but shoulder problems stunted his development and hastened his departure from the Mets. They traded Herrera to the Reds for outfielder Jay Bruce in August 2016, after the former had collected just 169 plate appearances in a New York uniform.
Herrera was a member of the Cincinnati organization until rejoining the Mets last winter. He only collected 97 trips to the plate as a Red, all last season, and owns a .203/.293/.394 line with a 91 wRC+ and 11 home runs in 266 major league attempts. The 25-year-old has been much more productive in Triple-A ball, where he has slashed .285/.350/.477 with 57 HRs in 1,561 attempts. Herrera added 17 of those homers this year as a member of the the Mets’ top affiliate in Syracuse and batted .258/.355/.566 (126 wRC+) in 256 PA.
Notable International Signings: 7/2/19
The 2019-20 July 2nd international signing period is officially underway, though it’s not exactly laden with suspense. Teams have long since lined up deals with newly eligible teenage players, so the news today largely represents confirmation of what was anticipated. Still, it’s a day of no small moment, particularly for the young men embarking upon professional careers.
Let’s round up some of the most notable signings of the day. Throughout, we’ll be citing to the reporting of Baseball America (signings tracker; scouting links) and MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez (Twitter feed; rankings) along with analysis from Fangraphs. You can find each team’s total bonus pool and other information on the process right here. Check the above links for further information and other signings. Here are a few key deals:
- Jasson Dominguez, OF, Yankees: Everyone’s top target is reportedly holding strong on his commitment to go to the Bronx. The deal is said to be for $5.1MM, per Jeff Passan of ESPN.com, with an announcement expected this evening. Dominguez is a switch-hitter who’s said to possess five-tool ability. The Fangraphs team is sufficiently impressed to run him all the way up to the #61 overall MLB prospect ranking right out of the gates (via Kiley McDaniel, on Twitter). The Yanks also have struck a $1.2MM deal with outfielder Jhon Diaz, Sanchez tweets. He was the 18th-rated player on the MLB.com board but ran all the way up to #7 at Fangraphs.
- Robert Puason, SS, Athletics: Another player who’ll command about $5MM, Puason is a toolsy shortstop with big upside. He was said to have a deal in place with the Braves before that team was slapped with international sanctions. It’s worth noting that the Atlanta organization wasn’t actually punished for agreeing to terms early (though that widespread practice is officially forbidden) but rather for structuring a group deal with Puason’s trainer, as Baseball America’s J.J. Cooper explains on Twitter.
- Luis Rodriguez, OF, Dodgers: The value on this one is unknown, but BA’s Ben Badler has photographic evidence of the signing (Twitter link). Rodriguez gets top-three billing from Fangraphs. The Los Angeles club is also in agreement with righty Kristian Cardozo, who’s also considered one of the thirty best players available.
- Bayron Lora, OF, Rangers: Baseball America has made this connection for some time; Sanchez tweets that it’s a $4.2MM deal for the slugging prospect. Shortstops Maximo Acosta and Zion Banister are also members of the Texas signing class. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (via Twitter) has the former at $1.6MM and the latter at $835K. As he notes, the Texas organization will need to acquire some added pool capacity to make the math work.
- Erick Pena, OF, Royals: This is another signing called in advance by the BA crew. Sanchez has the bonus at $3.8MM (Twitter link). FG labels Pena “a well-rounded outfielder with considerable physical projection.”
- Ronnier Quintero, C, Cubs: Occupying the #6 spot on the boards of both Fangraphs and MLB.com, Quintero will follow Willson Contreras from Venezuela to the Chicago organization. The Cubbies also have a deal with fellow top-ten-ish prospect Kevin Made, a shortstop. Sanchez puts the Quintero deal at $3MM and Made’s mark at $1.7MM. Another Venezuelan backstop, Brayan Altuve, will cost the Cubs another million bucks, seemingly setting up the organization for a search for some added pool money.
- Roberto Campos, OF, Tigers: The Detroit organization popped for a hefty $3MM to secure the services of the Cuban outfielder, per Badler (via Twitter). Campos defected in somewhat dramatic fashion several years ago at just 13 years of age. He wasn’t listed among the best prospects, but Chris McCosky of the Detroit News indicates on Twitter that the Tigers like his bat quite a bit.
Several other well-regarded prospects also secured bonuses of $2MM or more, per Sanchez and/or Badler:
Mets Outright Ryan O'Rourke To Triple-A
- The Phillies announced that righty Fernando Salas cleared waivers, and has been outrighted to Triple-A. Salas signed a minors deal with the club earlier this month and was called to the big league roster for one game (with one inning pitched) before being designated for assignment on Friday. This brief cameo marked Salas’ appearance in a tenth MLB season, following much longer stints with the Cardinals, Angels, and Mets throughout the decade. The 34-year-old had a 4.50 ERA over 40 innings with the D’Backs in 2018, and after a brief stay in the Braves’ minor league system last year, didn’t land with a new team until his contract with Philadelphia.
- The Mets have outrighted Ryan O’Rourke to Triple-A after the left-hander cleared waivers. (MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo was among those to report the news.) O’Rourke was designated for assignment last week. After signing a minor league contract with New York over the winter, O’Rourke appeared in two games for the Mets, marking his first MLB action since 2016 when he was a member of the Twins’ bullpen. Beyond his 48 1/3 career big league innings, O’Rourke has a 3.83 ERA, 9.3 K/9, and 3.46 K/BB rate over 404 1/3 innings as a minor leaguer for the Mets, Orioles, and Twins over nine pro seasons.
Mets Designate Carlos Gomez, Activate Noah Syndergaard
Per an official team announcement, the Mets have designated outfielder Carlos Gomez for assignment in order to make room for pitcher Noah Syndergaard, who has been activated from the injured list.
Syndergaard landed on the 10-day injured list on June 16 with a hamstring strain that forced him to exit his last start early. After spending two weeks on the shelf, Thor is on track to start Sunday’s series finale against the Braves. Thus far, Syndergaard hasn’t been able to produce the results we’ve come to expect from him; his 4.51 ERA is markedly above 2.93 mark he posted between 2015 and 2018. His 3.61 FIP paints a somewhat more promising picture, though even that is considerably worse than his previous numbers.
With Gomez out of the picture, the Mets will proceed with 13 pitchers on the active roster for the time being. Due to Dominic Smith’s emergence as a viable left fielder, Michael Conforto has stepped into a regular role in center field, leaving Juan Lagares as the team’s fourth outfielder and making Gomez relatively expendable.
However, it’s not just roster crunch that’s pushing Gomez off the roster: he has not been especially impressive in his 99 plate appearances with the Mets, slashing a mediocre .198/.278/.337 with 30 strikeouts. While his .616 OPS is a notch above Lagares’s dreadful .514 mark, Gomez has graded out poorly as a defensive center fielder; Lagares, on the other hand, benefits from a solid reputation as a defender. Now it looks as though Gomez, who was in his second stint with the Mets, will see his time with the team come to an end.
Mets Notes & Rumors: Vargas, Wheeler, Deadline, Familia
Mets executives aren’t pleased with left-hander Jason Vargas following his recent threat to a reporter in the clubhouse, an unnamed Mets official tells Wallace Matthews of Yahoo Sports. “We’re all angry with him,” says the official before rhetorically asking, “Think he’ll be here next year?” The incident could very well push Vargas out the door before the trade deadline, Matthews writes, as both ownership and the front office are “incensed” that Vargas has not simply apologized — which led to the team fielding questions regarding the incident even during this week’s ceremony to honor Tom Seaver. Matthews cites a second official who was “at a loss to explain Vargas’ hostility,” and COO Jeff Wilpon again addressed the issue and expressed regret and apologies in speaking with Matthews. While the $10K fine issued to Vargas didn’t even qualify as a slap on the wrist, Matthews notes that a team cannot issue a larger fine without being subject to a grievance from the MLBPA. Vargas clearly hasn’t helped his standing with the Mets, but he’s at least pitched well of late; he has a 2.55 ERA with 8.1 K/9, 3.6 BB/9 and a 42 percent grounder rate over his last 11 starts (60 innings).
More Mets chatter as their downward spiral continues…
- Zack Wheeler has had an uneven season but still seems like an obvious trade candidate barring a miraculous turnaround for the Mets. The 29-year-old is a free agent at season’s end, and while he’s sitting on a 4.51 ERA, Wheeler’s 3.75 FIP and 3.88 xFIP are more encouraging. Throw out the first two ugly outings of the season, and Wheeler has a 3.95 ERA with a 106-to-23 K/BB ratio over a span of 98 innings. Wheeler addressed the writing that’s on the wall when speaking with Mike Puma of the New York Post. “It’s there,” said Wheeler. “The trade deadline is coming up and there is no way around it, we need to start winning some games or some guys are going to start getting traded out of here. … It’s tough, because this is where you want to win, it’s New York and these are my guys and this is the group I want to win with.”
- While the Mets look like probable sellers, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com tweets that the team might be a bit quieter than many would expect. Although the organization has little choice but to trade Wheeler, the other moves might not bring a great return. The club will likely try to move Vargas and Todd Frazier for some salary relief, but the returns on such deals would be limited even with Vargas throwing fairly well of late. As Puma writes in his aforementioned column, the Mets’ previous front office regime frequently had to settle for marginal returns on veteran players due to ownership’s unwillingness to pay down much of the salaries still owed to players such as Addison Reed and Jay Bruce, among several others.
- Injured reliever Jeurys Familia is progressing toward a return, DiComo reports. The right-handed Familia, on the injured list with shoulder problems since June 18, was scheduled to begin a rehab assignment Friday at the Single-A level. His rehab stint could last more than just a game or two, DiComo notes, as the Mets would like Familia to show some of his past form before returning to the majors. The Mets reunited with Familia last offseason on a three-year, $30MM contract, which has been a disastrous investment for the team three months into the campaign. The 29-year-old Familia has endured two IL stints because of shoulder troubles and notched a 7.81 ERA/6.11 FIP with 9.11 K/9 and 6.83 BB/9 during the 27 2/3 innings he has pitched.
Mets, Matthew Allan Agree To Terms
June 28: Allan will sign his contract today, Heyman tweets. He’s expected to receive a $2.5MM signing bonus.
June 26: The Mets are in agreement on a deal with third-round selection Matthew Allan, reports Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). Allan had been considered a first-round talent who came with some signability issues, so the Mets have likely promised the high school righty a bonus that is considerably higher than his $668K slot value in order to forgo his commitment to Florida. Notably, MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo tweets that Allan has yet to take his physical.
Heading into the draft, Allan ranked as the No. 11 prospect in the draft, per ESPN’s Keith Law. MLB.com’s top 200 listed Allan at No. 13, while he was 16th on the top 500 over at Baseball America and 20th at Fangraphs. Law called Allan the best high school pitcher in this year’s draft, praising him for a 92-95 mph fastball and a curveball that is already regarded as a plus pitch. MLB.com’s report notes that Allen’s changeup took a step forward this season as well, giving the 6’3″, 210-pound righty the potential for a third above-average offering.
The Mets saved about $470K on top pick Brett Baty but also went considerably over slot in giving second-round pick Josh Wolf a $2.15MM bonus when his slot value was roughly $1.37MM. However, the Mets selected college seniors in each of the fourth through tenth rounds of the draft, leaving them a considerable bit of cash to allocate to Allan. Each received bonuses of $20K or less, and while that leaves New York with a topheavy draft class, they’ll come away with a pair of players who were widely considered to be among the 20 best talents available. Obviously, there’s plenty of variance in all MLB draftees — high schoolers in particular — so the Mets are taking a fairly high-risk approach in so aggressively frontloading their draft resources to secure this trio of prep stars.
