- After an MRI on Mets ace Jacob deGrom’s back returned good results Thursday, he had a throwing session and told Anthony DiComo of MLB.com and other reporters that he plans to start Opening Day. However, the Mets aren’t ready to say whether that will happen. Manager Luis Rojas stated the club’s taking “a day-to-day approach” with the back-to-back NL Cy Young winner, who probably won’t be able to go as long as expected if he does take the mound for their opener. He’d originally been slated for around 100 pitches, but 85 seems to be a more realistic ceiling now. In the meantime, deGrom will throw 65 pitches in an exhibition game against the Yankees on Sunday.
Mets Rumors
Mets Place Brad Brach, Jared Hughes On IL
The Mets have placed relievers Brad Brach and Jared Hughes on the injured list, Tim Britton of The Athletic was among those to report. The team didn’t provide a reason in either case, but neither player has reported to Summer Camp yet.
Brach had great success with the Orioles and Braves earlier in his career, but his production took a negative turn in 2019 as a member of the Cubs. After signing a one-year, $3MM deal in free agency, he slumped to a 6.13 ERA and a bloated 6.4 BB/9 in 39 2/3 innings, leading the Cubs to release him in August. Brach then caught on with the Mets, with whom he tossed 14 2/3 innings of 3.68 ERA ball and posted 9.2 K/9 against 1.8 BB/9. That was enough for New York to bring him back on a one-year, $850K with a 2021 club option.
Hughes, meanwhile, just joined the Mets last month, signing a major league deal worth a prorated $700K. The former Pirate, Brewer, Red and Phillie brings a strong track record of preventing runs and keeping the ball on the ground, though his 4.04 ERA and 5.29 FIP from a year ago rank among the worst of his career.
Both Brach and Hughes have eaten up quite a bit of innings in recent years, and the Mets likely had similar plans for them entering this season. Now, though, it’s now unknown if or when they’ll be ready to go. However, the Mets do still have several well-established late-game arms they’ll be able to call on, including Dellin Betances, Seth Lugo, Edwin Diaz, Jeurys Familia, Justin Wilson and Robert Gsellman.
Latest On Mets Bidding
2:13pm: This morning’s report has received quite a bit of pushback. Per a statement from Silver Lake, “Any claim that Silver Lake is making or joining a bid for the NY Mets is entirely false and inaccurate.”
That follows a report from Charles Gasparino of FOX Business (Twitter link), who cites a spokesperson for the proposition that Adelson “has no interest in buying” the Mets, whether or not as part of a group.
10:28am: In a major potential development in the Mets sale process, billionaire Sheldon Adelson has entered the bidding picture, according to a report from Thornton McEnery of the New York Post.
Adelson, a casino magnate and top Republican donor who previously dabbled with the NFL’s Raiders as they moved to Las Vegas, is not launching his own, independent bid. Rather, he and private equity firm Silver Lake Partners are said to be joining the already established bidding group led by the present owners of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and NHL’s New Jersey Devils.
As McEnery details, this represents quite an aggregation of wealth in one outfit. It isn’t clear just what the mix of ownership would be, though it seems Josh Harris and David Blitzer remain the lead prospective owners. Presumably, one of those men would be presented to the league as the would-be control person.
Most of the recent chatter surrounding the Mets sale process has involved the reemergence of Steve Cohen as the leading bidder. He was already trying to hold off a celebrity-laden group that couldn’t challenge him for financial supremacy. Now, Cohen will be vying with an even richer challenger.
Jacob deGrom Undergoes MRI
2:05pm: The results were not concerning, a source tells MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo (via Twitter). That’s obviously great news for the Mets.
12:22pm: The Mets have decided to send top starter Jacob deGrom in for an MRI on his ailing back, manager Luis Rojas told reporters including Newsday’s Tim Britton (Twitter link). deGrom left his Summer Camp appearance yesterday after a single inning.
There’s still no reason for serious alarm, to be clear. But it’s hardly the best news to follow up on yesterday’s development. Sending deGrom in for imaging does indicate that the organization has concern beyond the level of regular maintenance.
If all goes well and the MRI reveals minimal damage, perhaps there’s still a shot for deGrom to resume his march towards Opening Day. But even the missed build-up opportunity represents a threat given the shortened second training period we’re in. And the Mets will obviously want to exercise ample caution with their best player.
Jacob deGrom Dealing With Back Tightness
Mets ace Jacob deGrom departed the team’s instrasquad game after one inning Tuesday because of back tightness, Tim Healey of Newsday tweets.
It’s not yet clear whether this issue will jeopardize deGrom’s chances of taking the ball for the Mets when their season opens July 24. As Tim Britton of The Athletic points out, though, back tightness did prevent deGrom from making an Opening Day start in 2018.
If the Mets are going to break their three-year playoff drought in 2020, it stands to reason they’ll need a healthy deGrom continuing to lead their pitching staff. The 32-year-old is irreplaceable, having won back-to-back National League Cy Youngs and consistently provided front-line production since he debuted in the majors in 2014. He fired 204 innings of 2.43 ERA/2.67 FIP ball with 11.25 K/9 and 1.94 BB/9 last year.
Of course, with righty Noah Syndergaard out for the year after undergoing Tommy John surgery, deGrom is all the more important to the Mets’ cause. Marcus Stroman, Rick Porcello, Steven Matz and Michael Wacha are slated to make up the rest of what should be a solid rotation if healthy, but the Mets’ depth looks questionable (Walker Lockett and Corey Oswalt may be first in line for starts in the event of an injury).
Marcus Stroman Discusses Pending Free Agency
Mets right-hander Marcus Stroman is slated to become one of baseball’s most prominent free agents in a few months, though no one knows how the game’s economic landscape will look then in the wake of a 60-game season. Stroman discussed his upcoming trip to the open market over the weekend with Tim Healey of Newsday and other reporters. While Stroman is unsure of what the future holds, the 29-year-old is confident he’ll be one of the best pitchers available if he does get to the market.
“It will truly play out as it will play out,” Stroman said. “I should be one of the top arms. I believe I’m one of the youngest. I’m extremely healthy. I’m coming off a great year. So however it plays out I think it will play out.”
It’s hard to argue with any of that. Unlike last offseason’s free agency period that Gerrit Cole and Stephen Strasburg headlined, next winter’s won’t feature any surefire aces. But the likes of Stroman, Trevor Bauer and Robbie Ray look young enough and effective enough to cash in on multiyear contracts.
Stroman, who debuted in 2014 and has spent almost all of his career with the Blue Jays, has typically kept runs off the board at a nice clip. If there’s one clear negative, it’s that Stroman has never been any kind of strikeout artist. However, he has offset that by inducing a boatload of groundballs and limiting walks to a respectable degree.
Last year between Toronto and New York, Stroman combined for 184 1/3 innings – his most since a 201-frame effort in 2017 – and logged a 3.22 ERA/3.72 FIP with 7.76 K/9, 2.83 BB/9 and a 53.7 GB rate. For the most part, those numbers don’t stray too far from Stroman’s career figures. Stroman, though, is convinced he has even more in the tank, saying, “I truly believe my best years are ahead of myself.”
We’ll see if that proves to be the case during a shortened 2020, and whether Stroman does enough to convince the Mets to make a serious run at bringing him back. Owing in part to Stroman’s pending free agency, the Mets’ rotation will head into next winter facing quite a bit of uncertainty behind all-world ace Jacob deGrom. They’ll have a decision to make on Tommy John patient Noah Syndergaard’s roughly $9.7MM arbitration salary (odds are they’ll tender him, but the coronavirus has perhaps made that less of a sure bet), while Rick Porcello and Michael Wacha are due to join Stroman in free agency.
Brian Urlacher, Travis Kelce, Bradley Beal Involved In A-Rod/J. Lo Mets Bid
The group headed up by Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez put in a reported $1.7 billion bid on the Mets last week, and while they’re already known to be backed by VitaminWater and BodyArmor co-founder Mike Repole as well as Florida Panthers owner Vinnie Viola, ESPN’s Vaughn McClure reports that a host of other highly recognizable names are a part of the group. Among them are Pro Football Hall of Famer Brian Urlacher, former Cleveland Browns offensive tackle Joe Thomas and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce; Washington Wizards guard Bradley Beal; Denver Nuggets center Mason Plumlee; and ex-Dallas Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray.
Urlacher, 42, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2018 after a brilliant 13-year career as a linebacker with the Chicago Bears. The 2000 Defensive Rookie of the Year is an eight-time Pro-Bowler who earned more than $80MM in career salaries — to say nothing of countless endorsement deals during his time as one of the league’s most marketable players. He’s also dipped into NFL broadcasting and television analysis. Urlacher himself confirmed to McClure that he’s a part of the group, calling it a “pretty cool” opportunity and voicing particular excitement over working with Rodriguez and his other NFL brethren.
The 35-year-old Thomas figures to join Urlacher in the Hall of Fame when he gains eligibility for the honor in 2023. Thomas went to the Pro Bowl in 10 of his 11 seasons in the NFL from 2007-17, during which he earned $110MM, according to Over the Cap.
Like Urlacher, Kelce confirmed that he’s involved and expressed gratitude for being able to take part in such a “crazy opportunity.” He hasn’t had Urlacher’s 13-year career and decade-plus of endorsement deals, but Kelce is entering the final season of a five-year, $46.482MM contract extension. The five-time Pro Bowler ranks among the game’s elite at his position and should be in strong free-agent position upon the completion of his current deal.
Beal, the No. 3 pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, signed a two-year extension worth nearly $72MM back in October — a contract that came partway through his preexisting five-year, $127MM contract. Beal only just turned 27, so he has plenty of time to sign another big deal in the future, assuming he holds up. Plumlee scored his own sizable payday in 2017, re-signing with the Nuggets for $41MM over three years.
Murray, 32, hasn’t played in an NFL game since spending the 2017 season with the Tennessee Titans. The former NFL Offensive Player of the Year and three-time Pro Bowler, who made just under $26MM in the league, entered the college coaching ranks in recent seasons and is currently an assistant at his alma mater of Oklahoma.
The extent to which each of these high-profile investors is involved isn’t clear. While they’re all unquestionably wealthy and likely able to commit millions of dollars to the bid, it’s also likely that there are quite a few other investors contributing to the mix.
Mets Add Seven To 60-Man Player Pool
The Mets announced Monday that they’ve added seven players to their 60-man player pool: right-handers Matt Blackham, Jordan Humphreys and Franklyn Kilome; left-handers Stephen Gonsalves and Thomas Szapucki; infielder Jake Hager; and catcher David Rodriguez. They’ve filled 58 of the 60 spots in their pool. MetsMerized’s Michael Mayer first reported that Blackham, Humphreys and Gonsalves would be added (Twitter links).
Of the new adds today, Szapucki is the most highly regarded of the team’s prospects, ranking seventh at both FanGraphs and MLB.com. A fifth-round pick in 2015, Szapucki returned from Tommy John surgery to log 61 2/3 innings of 2.63 ERA ball with 10.5 K/9 against 3.8 BB/9 across three minor league levels in 2019. The 24-year-old topped out with four innings in Double-A, and while he wasn’t viewed as a candidate to log much time in the Majors this season, he’ll at the very least get in some developmental reps in the absence of a conventional minor league season.
Kilome, also 24, came over from the Phillies in the trade that sent Asdrubal Cabrera to Philadelphia back in 2017. He lands ninth on FanGraphs’ list and 12th at MLB.com on the heels of a 2019 season that he lost to his own Tommy John surgery. That procedure came back in October 2018, so Kilome should be largely back up to speed and ready to pick up after tossing 140 innings at Double-A that year. Kilome logged a 4.18 ERA with 8.0 K/9 against 3.9 BB/9. Kilome improved considerably upon being flipped to the Mets; in 38 innings with his new club his K/9 jumped from 7.3 to 10.0, and his BB/9 dropped from 4.5 to 2.4.
Among the other additions, the 26-year-old Gonsalves might be the most recognizable name. The former fourth-round pick was long a top prospect in the Twins organization and cracked multiple Top 100 lists as he rose through the minors, regularly drawing praise as a high-probability back-end starter. He never got much of a look in Minnesota, though (24 2/3 innings), and he’s been limited by arm troubles in recent years.
Humphreys, 24, is another arm on the mend from Tommy John surgery. He had a big 2017 season before surgery and will aim to work his way back into the team’s bullpen mix after pitching just 13 2/3 frames last year. Blackham posted sharp numbers last year, but he turned 27 in January and has only has 15 2/3 frames above Double-A to his credit. Hager and Rodriguez were minor league pickups this winter with limited offensive track records in the minors. Hager is a former first-round pick (Rays, 2011) who can play all over the infield, while Rodriguez brings some additional catching depth and a lifetime 39 percent caught-stealing rate to the table.
Yoenis Cespedes “Certain” He’ll Be Ready For Opening Day
Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes is sure that he will be ready to play when the Mets open the season on July 24, Bob Nightengale was among those to report.
Cespedes, 34, has become something of a forgotten figure in the Mets’ plans over the previous two years, and it’s easy to see why. He hasn’t appeared in a Major League game since July of 2018 thanks to ongoing injury issues. Assuming he is indeed able to take the field on Opening Day, it’s up for debate just how big a role he will play with the 2020 Mets, but one has to think he’ll be given ample opportunity to prove his worth to the club.
While the team has constructed a solid lineup and a good outfield despite Cespedes’s long-term absence, his return would nevertheless be a promising development for the club. Especially given the unique circumstances under which the 2020 season will be played, it can’t hurt to have a former MVP candidate at your disposal. And with just 60 games on the slate, the added depth will be as important as ever.
With the National League set to play with 2020 season with a Designated Hitter in the lineup, Cespedes should have plenty of opportunities to get at-bats, whether in left field or at DH. That said, it figures that manager Luis Rojas will want to deploy him in a timeshare at either spot, with J.D. Davis and Dominic Smith having earned their share of playing time too; neither has the lengthy resume that Cespedes boasts, but both have proven reliable more recently.
We’ll have to wait and see how quickly Cespedes can re-adjust to the challenges of facing Major League pitching in a game setting, and it’s certainly reasonable to temper expectations for his return to action. He’ll almost surely have trouble replicating the results that earned him a four-year, $110MM contract in 2017, but his experience might quicken the acclimation period. To be sure, welcoming Cespedes back to the team could yield considerable benefits for the Mets; reintroducing a slugger of Cespedes’s ilk to one of the stronger lineups in the National League could be the boost the Mets need to enter the NL’s upper echelon.
Either way, the Mets will think of Cespedes less as a franchise cornerstone and more as a wild card, especially since an amended contract lessened the team’s obligations to him and shifted his 2020 earnings to an incentive-heavy arrangement. The ceiling is still high if he hits the ground running, but there won’t be as much of a sunk cost if he fails to return to his previous form.
Devin Mesoraco Joins University Of Pittsburgh Coaching Staff
Devin Mesoraco has joined the University of Pittsburgh baseball team as a volunteer assistant, per Kendall Rogers of d1baseball.com. Presumably, this means the former catcher’s playing days are done.
Mesoraco came highly-touted to the majors, from his selection at number fifteen overall in the 2007 draft, to his years as a top prospect in the Cincinnati Reds’ organization. He made his debut with the Reds in 2011 at the age of 23. Though he struggled over an 18-game sample, that did nothing to lessen the excitement over their presumed catcher of the future.
Before the start of the following season, Mesoraco was named the Reds’ number one prospect by Baseball America and a consensus top prospect in baseball. Baseball America had him as the #16 overall prospect in baseball prior to 2012 and Fangraphs had him at #15. Kevin Goldstein at Baseball Prospectus was slightly less bullish, but even he put Mesoraco at #24.
It was a tough era to be a top catching prospect, however (Jesus Montero, Travis d’Arnaud, Yasmani Grandal, Gary Sanchez, Wilin Rosario, Austin Hedges, Ryan Lavarnway, and Derek Norris were some of the other highly-regarded catching prospects). By the time Mesoraco was set to take over behind the plate in Cincinnati, he’d already suffered through a number of ticky-tack injuries. A high-character player, hopes were still high that he’d develop into a franchise catcher.
Though he didn’t quite reach those heights, he put together respectable major league career that lasted 8 seasons – all but the final 66 games taking place in Cincinnati. He largely struggled at the dish, but it all came together for a 26-year-old Mesoraco in 2014. That season, he appeared in 114 games and hit .273/.359/.534 with 25 home runs and 80 RBIs, making his lone All-Star appearance.
Injuries continued to play a part in Mesoraco’s career, however, and he only twice appeared in more than 100 games. In May of 2018 – his final season – the Reds traded Mesoraco to the Mets for another battered former top prospect in Matt Harvey. He did a nice job finishing that season for the Mets, hitting .222/.306/.409 with 10 long balls. If indeed this is it for Mesoraco, he’ll finish with a .232/.309/.406 line and 58 home runs, totaling 4.6 rWAR.
