Max Scherzer Reportedly Open To Waiving No-Trade Clause
The Mets have dropped seven of their last ten, leaving them at 35-43 heading into Tuesday’s game against Milwaukee. Coming off a 101-win season and boasting the highest player payroll in MLB history, they’re on the shortlist of the most disappointing teams in the league.
A little more than a month from the trade deadline, New York could wind up being one of the more fascinating clubs to follow. Ownership and the front office would surely prefer the club plays its way back into contention and puts them in position to add this summer, though that’s no small feat. Hopes of winning the NL East are gone, and the team sits 8 1/2 games out of the last Wild Card spot with six teams to surpass.
If the Mets pivot to selling off veteran pieces, opposing teams could at least ponder a run at Max Scherzer. The three-time Cy Young award winner is in the second season of a three-year, $130MM free agent deal. He’s making an MLB-record $43.333MM annually and can opt out and retest free agency at season’s end.
Scherzer’s deal contains a full no-trade clause, so the Mets couldn’t move him without his consent. Industry sources suggest to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com that Scherzer would be amenable to waiving the provision in the right circumstances — presumably one that’d see him shipped to a team with legitimate 2023 championship aspirations. Scherzer famously waived a no-trade clause in his deal with the Nationals at the 2021 deadline, enabling the stunner that landed him and Trea Turner in Dodger blue.
That’s not to say a trade is likely this time around. The no-trade clause is one of myriad roadblocks. The Mets aren’t going to pull the plug on the ’23 season until absolutely necessary; the roster still has a few weeks to take itself off the bubble. Even if the Mets were to consider moving veteran players, parting with Scherzer would represent a much bigger decision than relinquishing pure rentals like David Robertson and Tommy Pham.
While Scherzer could join Robertson and Pham on the open market, he’s by no means a lock to do so. He’d have to forfeit the largest single-year salary in MLB history. Scherzer isn’t performing at vintage level and will turn 39 next month, so there’s no assurance he’d do much better than $43.333MM on the open market. The eight-time All-Star might be able to top that guarantee but would probably have to spread it over a two-year deal with lesser yearly salaries.
Over 13 starts and 70 2/3 innings, he’s carrying a 3.95 ERA. His 26.2% strikeout rate is still quite good but a few points below typical levels. His velocity and swinging strike numbers aren’t far off his customary marks, though he’s allowing home runs at a career-high clip.
If the Mets feel Scherzer is unlikely to opt out, they could view dealing him this summer as too much of a blow to their 2024 chances even if they’re definitively out of this year’s mix. The record salaries, meanwhile, could be a problem for teams considering a run at him. It’s unlikely another franchise would absorb the approximate $14.2MM Scherzer will collect between August 1 and season’s end, to say nothing of the ’24 commitment they could assume if he doesn’t test free agency.
Of course, the Mets could shoulder much of Scherzer’s deal to facilitate a trade if they wanted to restock the farm system. Andy Martino of SNY reported last week that owner Steve Cohen was willing to leverage his spending capacity to bolster the prospect pipeline — either by taking on another team’s undesirable deal or covering contracts of players shipped out of Queens. New York put that into action by paying down Eduardo Escobar’s $9.5MM salary to the league minimum to facilitate his trade to the Angels.
Doing the same with Scherzer would be in a completely different stratosphere — both in terms of the money New York is retaining and the hit they’d deal to the MLB roster. There’s no indication it’s a consideration right now. That Scherzer may not be categorically opposed to changing uniforms at least leaves open the possibility of a second blockbuster in three years, but the no-trade clause is far from the only impediment.
Mets To Select T.J. McFarland
The Mets are calling up left-hander T.J. McFarland, reports Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. The southpaw wasn’t on the 40-man roster but the Mets already had vacancies in that regard. Fellow lefty Josh Walker will be optioned to open a spot on the active roster.
McFarland, 34, signed a minor league deal with the Mets this winter. He’s spent the year in Triple-A Syracuse, tossing 32 2/3 innings over 23 appearances. He has a 2.76 ERA in that time, striking out 25.9% of opponents while walking 11.9% of them and getting grounders on 62.8% of balls in play.
The lefty has plenty of big league experience as a ground ball specialist. He has a 4.13 career ERA in 472 1/3 innings, striking out just 13.5% of hitters at the big league level but keeping the ball on the ground at a 62.1% clip. He was released by the Cardinals in August of last year after posting a 6.61 ERA, though that figure was at 2.56 the year prior.
The Mets have operated with Brooks Raley as their primary left-hander this season, with pitchers like Walker and Zach Muckenhirn also getting into the mix. McFarland’s strong work in Triple-A this year will now get him a chance to play a role in the bullpen. Mets’ relievers have a combined 4.22 ERA, a mark that places them 22nd out of the 30 clubs in the league.
Mets Claim Reed Garrett From Orioles
The Orioles announced that the Mets have claimed right-hander Reed Garrett off waivers. Garrett was designated for assignment by the O’s last weekend.
Garrett signed a minor league deal with Baltimore in the offseason, and his contract was selected to the MLB roster 11 days ago. The righty lasted only four days in the Show before being DFA’ed, with Garrett posting a 10.13 ERA over two appearances and 2 2/3 innings pitched. In the longer sample size of 22 2/3 innings thrown by Garrett at Triple-A Norfolk, he has a 1.59 ERA and a 28.4% strikeout rate, albeit with a 10.4% walk rate.
Originally a 16th-round draft pick for the Rangers in 2014, Garrett’s big league career began in 2019 when the Tigers selected him in the Rule 5 Draft but later returned him to the Texas organization. Garrett pitched in Japan with the Seibu Lions in 2020-21 with good results, before returning to North America on a minor league contract with the Nationals and getting into seven games (9 1/3 IP) with Washington in 2022.
In claiming Garrett, the Mets add a bit more bullpen depth to a pitching staff that has had more than its share of injuries. Garrett would be a bit of a late bloomer at 30 years old, but his numbers in Triple-A and in Nippon Professional Baseball are intriguing enough that the Mets might think the righty has some untapped potential.
Angels Acquire Eduardo Escobar
The Mets and Angels pulled off an unexpected swap Friday night. New York dealt veteran infielder Eduardo Escobar and cash considerations to the Halos for pitching prospects Coleman Crow and Landon Marceaux. New York is reportedly paying Escobar’s salary down to the $720K league minimum.
Escobar, 34, spent a year and a half in Queens. The amiable infielder signed a two-year, $20MM free agent contract over the 2021-22 offseason. He worked as New York’s primary third baseman last year, starting 125 games and tallying 542 plate appearances. He put together a decent .240/.295/.430 showing, compensating for the mediocre on-base mark by connecting on 20 home runs.
That kind of production is par for the course. Escobar doesn’t draw many walks, which generally keeps his on-base percentage around or below the league average. He’s a solid power bat, though, reaching the 20-homer mark in every full season between 2017-22. A 35-homer season with the Diamondbacks in 2019 looks to have been inflated by that year’s very lively ball, but Escobar has a decent amount of pop in his bat.
He hasn’t shown that in 2023, largely thanks to an early-season slump. Escobar opened the year as New York’s third baseman but hit only .125/.173/.229 through April 16. At that point, New York recalled top prospect Brett Baty and installed him at the hot corner. That pushed Escobar into a depth role for which he’s arguably overqualified.
To his credit, Escobar has played well in sporadic playing time since being pushed to the bench. He has a .323/.373/.548 batting line in 67 plate appearances since Baty was promoted. His overall season line still checks in below-average (.236/.286/.409) thanks to the brutal first few weeks, but Escobar has contributed when given opportunities of late.
Nevertheless, there wasn’t a clear path for him to get back into the starting lineup. The 23-year-old Baty is viewed as a potential cornerstone offensive player. He has struggled after a torrid first few weeks but continued to get regular playing time. Baty has taken four of the last six starts at the hot corner, all of which have come against right-handed pitching. Jeff McNeil is entrenched at second base, closing off Escobar’s other main path to playing time.
There are no such roadblocks in Anaheim. The Angels have been hit with a trio of infield injuries in rapid succession over the past week. Shortstop Zach Neto strained his oblique. Corner infielder Gio Urshela suffered a fractured pelvis that is likely to end his season. Anthony Rendon sustained a left wrist contusion on a hit-by-pitch.
All of a sudden, the Halos were pressing Andrew Velazquez, Luis Rengifo and some combination of Jared Walsh and Michael Stefanic into regular playing time around Brandon Drury. That’s a suboptimal group for a club battling for a playoff spot.
Escobar isn’t likely to take playing time from Velazquez at shortstop. While he had experience there early in his career, he hasn’t played the position with any regularity since 2018. He’ll be an option at the other infield spots, particularly third and second base. Public metrics like Defensive Runs Saved and Statcast’s Outs Above Average have pegged him as a below-average defender in recent years, but he can bounce around the dirt as a bat-first utility option.
He’s most directly a replacement for the right-handed hitting Urshela. Escobar switch hits but has been quite a bit more effective from the right side of the dish. Over the past five seasons, he carries a .278/.317/.514 line against left-handed pitching while hitting .237/.300/.431 versus righty arms. Since displacing him at third base, the Mets have deployed him primarily against southpaws — a huge factor in his much improved production.
With Escobar having a diminished role in Queens and the Halos suddenly hunting for infield help, there’s a decent amount of appeal for everyone involved. It’s rare to see a trade of this kind of consequence occur in June, but it’s understandable the Angels wanted to jump the market. Their infield need is most pressing while Rendon is out of action. The Halos don’t have much margin for error in a jumbled American League playoff picture. Los Angeles entered play tonight half a game behind the Yankees for the last AL Wild Card spot and six games back of the Rangers in the AL West.
The Mets entered the season with divisional aspirations after winning 101 games last year. New York has played disappointing ball thus far, carrying a 34-40 record into play Friday night. Now 14 games back of the Braves in the NL East, they’re all but out of the division mix. They’re still within shouting distance of a Wild Card spot, seven games behind the Dodgers.
New York isn’t yet conceding the 2023 campaign. General manager Billy Eppler told Tim Healey of Newsday that trading Escobar had “no correlation” with the rest of the club’s deadline plans. Rather, the team jumped on an opportunity to cash in a player who had been pushed out of the lineup for a pair of minor league pitchers.
Crow ranked 17th on Baseball America’s midseason update of the Angels’ farm system and checked in eighth on Eric Longenhagen’s recent list at FanGraphs. An overslot signee out of high school in the 28th round of the 2019 draft, Crow draws praise for his athleticism and a quality slider.
The Georgia native is regarded as a potential back-of-the-rotation starter or multi-inning reliever. He’ll be eligible for the Rule 5 draft if not added to the 40-man roster by November, so he’d profile as near-term pitching depth if healthy. He has been on the injured list since the end of April but started his season with a 1.88 ERA and excellent 31:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 24 innings at Double-A.
Marceaux, a 2021 third-round pick out of LSU, ranked 20th in the Halos’ system at BA. While he typically works in the low 90s with his fastball, he’s credited with plus control of a four-pitch mix. He has spent his age-23 season in Double-A, working to a 4.88 ERA through 59 innings. The right-hander has a below-average 17.1% strikeout rate but has kept his walks to a tidy 7.2% clip. He won’t be Rule 5 eligible until after the 2024 campaign and seems to profile as a depth starter.
To entice the Halos to part with those arms, the Mets paid down virtually all of Escobar’s $9.5MM salary. They’re paying an accompanying 110% tax on that money. Andy Martino of SNY reported this afternoon that New York was open to spending to improve their farm system, either by taking on another team’s undesirable contract while getting back minor league talent or paying down some of their own deals. They’ve put that into action with today’s swap.
Escobar’s contract contains a $9MM club option for next season with a $500K buyout. It seems likely the Halos will opt for the buyout, although there’s at least some flexibility to keep him around if he goes on a second-half tear. The far bigger concern is plugging in an immediate stopgap veteran to help them weather their injury issues.
Doing so at no financial cost keeps their luxury tax number around $238MM, as estimated by Roster Resource — a few million north of the $233MM base threshold. They’ll surely be willing to get more aggressive as the deadline approaches if they’re still in the thick of the playoff race. Supporting the back of the rotation and/or adding middle infield help could be future goals for GM Perry Minasian and his staff.
Andy Martino of SNY first reported the Mets were paying Escobar’s salary down to league minimum.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Mets Select Grant Hartwig
The Mets announced that they have selected the contract of right-hander Grant Hartwig, with fellow righty John Curtiss optioned in a corresponding move. The club already had vacancies on their 40-man roster and won’t need to make another move in that regard.
Hartwig, 25, doesn’t have the typical baseball trajectory. Tim Healey of Newsday did a profile on the right-hander back in the spring, detailing his unusual storyline. In the summer of 2021, Hartwig had just graduated from Miami University of Ohio, receiving a degree in microbiology. He was then preparing to go to medical school when the Mets called him up and offered him a contract as an undrafted free agent.
He would toss 11 2/3 innings in the lower levels of the minors that year but truly put himself on the map in 2022. He shot from Single-A to High-A then Double-A and Triple-A last year, eventually posting a 1.75 ERA in 56 2/3 innings. His 10.3% walk rate was a tad high but he struck out 35.5% of batters faced. He’s been back in Triple-A this year, posting a serviceable 4.21 ERA over 25 2/3 relief innings, striking out 29.7% of opponents while walking 12.7%.
Now just two years after getting that fateful phone call from the Mets, Hartwig is set to make his major league debut, giving the Mets a fresh arm in their bullpen. Since this is his first time cracking a major league roster, he has a full slate of options and can give the club some roster flexibility going forward.
Mets Activate Pete Alonso From 10-Day Injured List
Pete Alonso has made a quick return from the injured list, as the Mets announced that the first baseman has been activated from the 10-day IL after just the minimum 10 days. In the corresponding move, New York optioned Mark Vientos to Triple-A.
Alonso was hit on the left wrist by a Charlie Morton fastball back on June 7, leaving the slugger with a sprain and a bone bruise. While Alonso at least escaped a more serious injury like a fracture, he was still expected to miss at least 3-4 weeks recovering. Instead, the Polar Bear easily beat that timeline and is already on his way back to the Mets lineup.
Getting Alonso back so soon is a nice outcome for a Mets team in dire need of a break. After losing 10 of their last 13 games, the Mets are 33-37 and sit in fourth place in NL East — a wholly disapppointing result for a team that won 101 games in 2022, and is spending at record levels this season. While there’s still plenty of time for the Mets to get on track, the Amazins have already dug themselves a big hole, and a wild card may be their only path to the playoffs since the Braves lead them by 11.5 games.
An inconsistent offense has been one of the factors in New York’s slide, so Alonso’s power bat will be welcome. Even after missing time on the IL, Alonso still leads the National League with 22 home runs, and only Shohei Ohtani (23) has more homers league-wide. The first baseman is hitting .231/.326/.546 over 261 plate appearances, and Alonso’s batting average and OBP are both down from career norms. Still, Alonso is making tons of hard contact, and his incredibly low .199 BABIP indicates that Alonso could be hitting a lot better than his already-productive slash line.
Vientos was called up to the majors about a month ago, and he hit .178/.224/.244 over 49 PA. It was an underwhelming performance for a hitter considered one of the Mets’ top prospects, though Vientos also didn’t receive much in the way of consistent playing time. Working mostly as a DH with a few appearances at both corner infield positions, Vientos only played a full game in seven of his 16 appearances. He’ll now head back to Triple-A to await his next opportunity, though Vientos may not have anything left to prove in the minors, given his 1.104 OPS over 166 PA at Syracuse this season.
Mets Sign Rafael Ortega To Minor League Deal
The Mets have signed outfielder Rafael Ortega to a minor league deal, reports Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors. Ortega will report to Triple-A Syracuse.
Ortega, 32, was non-tendered by the Cubs at the end of last year and has since bounced around to various non-roster opportunities. He signed a minor league deal with the Yankees in January but requested and was granted a release when he was informed he wouldn’t make the club out of Spring Training. He quickly landed another minor league deal with the Rangers but was granted his released from that club just over a week ago. Before his release, he was hitting .226/.333/.381 through 199 plate appearances in Triple-A.
Prior to this nomadic year, Ortega had a solid two-year run with the Cubs in 2021 and 2022. He got into 221 games in those seasons and made 701 trips to the plate. He hit 18 home runs and walked at an above-average 10.6% clip. His combined .265/.344/.408 batting line amounted to a wRC+ of 108, indicating he was 8% above league average. He spent most of his time in center field, where his work was graded as just a bit below average.
Given the difficulty in finding capable center fielders who can also hold their own at the plate, that was a valuable performance. Ortega earned a combined 2.2 wins above replacement from FanGraphs over those seasons and 2.3 from Baseball Reference. Nonetheless, the Cubs decided to cut him loose rather than pay a projected arbitration salary of $1.7MM for 2023.
The Mets have a regular outfield of Brandon Nimmo, Mark Canha and Starling Marte, with Tommy Pham also in the mix. The recent injury to Pete Alonso has seen Canha spent a bit of time at first base, however, thrusting Pham into a more regular role. The designated hitter slot is also fairly up for grabs thanks to the struggles of Daniel Vogelbach, who is hitting .203/.343/.297 for the year. He hasn’t appeared in a game in over a week and Mike Puma of the New York Post recently relayed that Vogelbach is getting a mental break as the club tries to figure out how to get him back on track.
Given those factors, perhaps there’s a path for Ortega to earn his way into a reserve outfield role with the club. If he is able to get onto the roster, he is out of options but could be retained for future seasons since he currently has under three years of major league service time.
NL East Notes: Chavez, Ridings, Doolittle
The Braves dodged a bullet yesterday when righty Jesse Chavez was hit in the leg by a comebacker and helped off the field, as initial x-rays did not reveal a fracture. The team originally believed Chavez would be able to avoid an IL stint entirely, that didn’t prove to be the case. Atlanta placed Chavez on the 15-day injured list, per a club announcement, and recalled right-hander Ben Heller from Triple-A Gwinnett in his place. Losing Chavez even just for two weeks or so will sting. The 39-year-old has been outstanding for Atlanta, pitching to a 1.55 ERA with a career-best 30.8% strikeout rate against a 7.7% walk rate. Chavez has already picked up a save and a dozen holds for the Braves, and he was on an 11-inning scoreless streak prior to his injury.
A few more notes from the NL East…
- The Mets announced Thursday that they’ve reinstated right-hander Stephen Ridings from the 60-day injured list and optioned him to Triple-A Syracuse. The move fills a spot on the team’s 40-man roster, increasing their count from 37 to 38 players. Ridings, 27, has yet to throw a pitch for the Mets, spending the entire season to date on the injured list due to a lat strain. The Mets claimed the right-hander off waivers from the Yankees back in mid-November, just before teams set their rosters in advance of the 2022 Rule 5 Draft. Shoulder troubles derailed Ridings’ 2022 season, but he posted a 1.24 ERA and 42-to-4 K/BB ratio in 29 innings between High-A and Double-A in the Yankees system back in 2021.
- Veteran lefty Sean Doolittle was transferred from the Nationals‘ Double-A affiliate to their Triple-A club Thursday, signaling that he’s completed his rehab work and is now considered fully healthy. The 36-year-old Doolittle, who signed a minor league deal with the Nats over the winter, is being formally reinstated from the injured list and will try to pitch his way back into the Majors with a strong showing in Rochester. Doolittle allowed three runs and posted a 10-to-2 K/BB ratio in seven rehab frames between Class-A and Double-A. The lefty pitched just 5 1/3 frames for the Nats in 2022 before requiring an internal brace procedure in his elbow over the summer.
MLBTR Trade Rumors Podcast: Stroman Lobbies for Extension, Mets’ Woes and Astros Seeking Bats
The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.
This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss:
- Marcus Stroman lobbying for an extension with the Cubs (1:40)
- The struggling Mets lose Pete Alonso to the injured list (6:00)
- The Astros seem more focused on getting bats than arms at the deadline (10:05)
Plus, we answer your questions, including:
- Other than a pure prospect, I don’t see a difference making middle of the order bat being available at the trade deadline. Be it a 2 month rental or even someone with 1 or 2 years of control. Do you? If so please tell me about him. (14:45)
- Could this be the year in which the O’s get a starter? They’re notoriously cheap when it comes to big contracts or giving up the farm, but I can’t see any team going deep into the playoffs with Kyle Gibson or Tyler Wells as their Game One ace. If so, who are the top candidates, knowing that the O’s will have to compete on the market with any team with a winning percentage over .500? (19:45)
- The Cardinals are full of young players that may not be stars in the making, but probably get a fairer shot at regular playing time on many other rosters to prove their worth. If the Cards ultimately become sellers at the deadline, do they really get much value in moving guys like Iván Herrera, Juan Yepez, Luken Baker, Moises Gomez, and/or one of their outfielders? Or are they content to have that depth if the returns are minimal? (22:35)
Check out our past episodes!
- Elly De La Cruz, Alek Manoah’s Demotion and Surgery for Jacob deGrom – listen here
- The Wide-Open NL Wild Card Race, Returning Pitchers and Cast-Off Veterans – listen here
- The Mets are turning things around, and how serious are the Mariners, Marlins and Diamondbacks? – listen here
Mets’ Drew Smith Issued 10-Game Suspension For Foreign Substance Violation
TODAY: The league officially announced that Smith has been suspended for 10 games, and will be fined. According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Smith won’t file an appeal, so his 10-game absence begins with tonight’s game against the Yankees.
JUNE 13: Mets reliever Drew Smith was ejected by first base umpire Bill Miller in the seventh inning of tonight’s matchup with the Yankees. Smith had been called upon to enter the game but was tossed before throwing a pitch after umpires checked him for foreign substances.
Smith is the third pitcher of the season to be ejected for foreign substances, each of whom has come from the two teams involved in tonight’s contest. Mets ace Max Scherzer was thrown out of a start in April, while Yankees starter Domingo Germán was ejected last month.
A foreign substance ejection comes with an automatic 10-game suspension. It’s likely MLB will formally levy that ban on Smith tomorrow. The righty will have the ability to appeal, though that would be heard by a league official. Neither Scherzer nor Germán pursued an appeal; both pitchers served out the suspension before returning to the roster.
Players suspended for an on-field rules violation cannot be replaced on the roster. Assuming Smith is indeed suspended, the Mets will have to play with a 25-man roster for a week and a half.
They’ll also be down one of their better high-leverage arms. The 29-year-old has a 4.18 ERA across 23 2/3 innings. He’d posted a 3.33 mark through 46 frames last year, however, and he’s striking hitters out at an above-average 27.7% clip. Smith has picked up a pair of saves and held eight more leads this year.