Mets Rumors

Mets Release Vance Worley

By Steve Adams | June 22, 2018 at 8:42am CDT

The Mets have released right-hander Vance Worley, reports Betsy Helfand of the Las Vegas Journal-Review (via Twitter). The veteran right-hander had been on the disabled list with the team’s Triple-A affiliate in Vegas.

Worley, 30, signed with the Mets back in mid-April to provide some rotation depth, but he made just four starts with the 51’s before landing on the disabled list with an elbow issue (per Helfand). The results weren’t pretty in the 16 2/3 inning Worley was healthy enough to pitch, as he was clobbered for 25 runs on 29 hits and a dozen walks with just five strikeouts.

Given the extreme nature of his struggles, it’s perhaps not surprising that he wound up on the DL with elbow troubles. Worley, after all, entered his stint with the Mets with a career 3.55 ERA in 278 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level and a 4.09 ERA in 667 big league innings. While he was coming off one of his worst big league seasons — 6.91 ERA, 6.3 K/9, 3.8 BB/9 in 71 2/3 innings with Miami — it certainly does appear he was pitching at less than 100 percent in his brief time with Vegas.

Depending on the health of his elbow moving forward, Worley could well land with another organization as a depth option in the upper minors later this season. The righty did post a 3.38 ERA (3.98 FIP) in 269 innings from 2014-16 with the Pirates and Orioles.

Mets To Select Drew Smith, Kevin Kaczmarski

By Steve Adams | June 21, 2018 at 8:03pm CDT

The Mets announced following today’s game that they’ve optioned righties Paul Sewald and Chris Flexen to Triple-A Las Vegas. While the team said that corresponding moves won’t be announced until tomorrow, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports that the organization will select the contracts of right-handed reliever Drew Smith and outfielder Kevin Kaczmarski (Twitter link). Kaczmarski was scratched from tonight’s lineup for the 51’s, Betsy Helfand of the Las Vegas Journal-Review tweets.

That pair of additions to the 40-man roster will require another pair of corresponding moves. The Mets, obviously, can move AJ Ramos from the 10-day DL to the 60-day DL to account for one of those moves, now that Ramos has undergone surgery to repair a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder.

The second move isn’t yet clear. It’s possible that they could designate someone for assignment or release someone — Jose Reyes has been rumored to be on thin ice — and DiComo speculates that the team could recall injured righty Jamie Callahan and put him on the MLB 60-day DL, as he’s already out for the year.

[Related: New York Mets depth chart]

In Smith, the Mets will be getting their first MLB look at the hard-throwing righty they acquired from the Rays in last year’s Lucas Duda trade. The 24-year-old has worked to a 3.00 ERA with 8.4 K/9, 3.6 BB/9, 0.9 HR/9 and a 45.6 percent ground-ball rate through 30 innings in an excessively hitter-friendly environment. MLB.com ranks him as the team’s No. 30 prospect, praising his plus heater and above-average curveball and writing that he has “all the ingredients to be an effective short reliever.”

Kaczmarski, 26, has just 24 games of experience at the Triple-A level, but a combination of his impressive numbers and several injuries in the Mets’ outfield mix has opened an opportunity for him in the Majors, it seems. The 2015 ninth-rounder has hit .363/.413/.450 through 92 plate appearances in Vegas and has a track record of relatively low strikeout rates and solid walk rates. For a Mets club that is currently using Dominic Smith in left field with Cespedes, Jay Bruce and Juan Lagares all on the disabled list, it’s only logical to see a more natural outfield option join the fray.

Jay Bruce Diagnosed With Hip Strain

By Jeff Todd | June 20, 2018 at 10:10pm CDT

Though the Mets tried to avoid it, they finally were forced to place outfielder Jay Bruce on the 10-day DL. It turns out that he was dealing with more than just soreness; Tim Britton of The Athletic was among those to tweet that imaging revealed a strain in Bruce’s right hip.

Skipper Mickey Callaway did not reveal much about the severity of the injury, though he said “there’s definitely something there.” It seems reasonable to anticipate that the Mets will now give Bruce whatever time he needs for things to clear up.

Notably, the veteran outfielder has not just been feeling pain in his hip. In fact, he has dealt with an ongoing bout of plantar fasciitis and also has had some lower back issues of late, as Anthony DiComo of MLB.com recently tweeted.

Bruce, 31, is among the players whose early performances have been less than encouraging for New York. Through 236 plate appearances, he carries a meager .212/.292/.321 batting line.

At this stage of the season, given how things have gone for the Mets, the injury itself is probably less concerning than Bruce’s overall struggles. Perhaps the multiple maladies have contributed to his woes at the plate, though, in which case this respite may offer a much-needed reset.

Bruce’s three-year, $39MM contract has only just begun, so he never seemed to be a likely mid-season trade candidate. If he can turn things around in the second half, though, it’ll certainly improve the team’s future roster flexibility. In the meantime, Bruce’s absence will also allow the Mets to give some extra opportunities to youngster Dominic Smith, who’s hoping to show more in his second attempt at the majors.

Brian Anderson, Brandon Nimmo Hire CAA Sports

By Jeff Todd | June 20, 2018 at 4:43pm CDT

A pair of increasingly promising young NL East players have hired CAA Sports to represent them. Marlins third baseman/corner outfielder Brian Anderson and Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo are each now repped by CAA, per Jon Heyman of Fan Rag (via Twitter) and Joel Sherman of the New York Post (via Twitter).

Anderson, 25, has made the most of his opportunities in Miami. Indeed, he has been a breakout performer thus far for the Fish, turning in 316 plate appearances of .294/.373/.423 hitting on the season.

Though Anderson has never shown a ton of power — he has four this year and has never hit more than 22 in a full professional season — he’s succeeding thus far with a lofty batting average and solid walk rate. The same general profile worked for his predecessor, Martin Prado, who similarly showed the ability to play multiple positions at the game’s highest level.

All things considered, it looks like the Fish have found a solid piece who’ll help them for years. Anderson has carried a hefty .363 batting average on balls in play this year, but Statcast actually thinks he has been a bit unlucky overall based upon his quality of contact (.347 wOBA vs. .368 xwOBA).

It’s conceivable that the Marlins could come calling at some point about a long-term contract arrangement, though perhaps there isn’t a ton of upside for the club with a player who may not possess an immense ceiling (in terms of productivity and arbitration earning power). Since this is Anderson’s first full season in the majors, his reps likely won’t be negotiating any playing contracts for some time. He won’t qualify for arbitration until 2021 and free agency three years after that.

The situation isn’t all that different for Nimmo, though his breakout has been all the more compelling. He had already shown well last year in his second partial season in the bigs, but has been off to a torrid start in 2018. Over 215 plate appearances this year, he boasts a .287/.409/.596 batting line with a dozen home runs and seven steals.

That output dwarfs the typical counting numbers that Nimmo produced over his time in the minors, when he was noted more for his ability to get on base than to produce power and swipe bags. He’s still walking at a 12.6% clip this season, too, so the OBP figures to remain a big part of his value even if he cools a bit. Statcast does see some good fortune in Nimmo’s recent past, as he owns a .423 wOBA but only a .382 xwOBA.

Due to his prior service time, Nimmo is in a different service class than Anderson. Nimmo came into the year with 1.042 years on his ticker, so he won’t be a Super Two but is on track to reach arbitration (2020) and free agency (2023) one season before Anderson can.

These agency relationships are now reflected in MLBTR’s agency database. A tip of the cap to Robert Murray of Fan Rag for noting on Twitter that both players had moved to CAA, as we had overlooked Sherman’s report yesterday.

AJ Ramos To Undergo Shoulder Surgery

By Steve Adams | June 19, 2018 at 10:36pm CDT

Mets reliever AJ Ramos has a torn labrum in his right shoulder and will undergo season-ending surgery tomorrow, the team tells reporters (Twitter link via Mike Puma of the New York Post). The right-hander has been out since May 27 with a shoulder injury and was recently said to be weighing surgery.

Ramos, 31, served as the closer for the Marlins for two and a half seasons before the Mets acquired him in a surprising trade last July. New York had already begun selling off veteran pieces, but GM Sandy Alderson explained at the time that the move was made with an eye toward 2018. The Mets didn’t pay a steep price in terms of prospects to acquire Ramos (Merandy Gonzalez and Ricardo Cespedes), given his salary obligations, but they did agree to a $9.225MM salary with Ramos this winter in avoiding arbitration.

That will go down as a mostly sunk cost for the Mets, as Ramos was solid through the month of April but was shelled in May and will finish out the year with a 6.41 ERA in 19 2/3 innings. While he racked up an impressive 22 punchouts in that time, he also issued 15 walks and surrendered three homers before initially landing on the disabled list.

Ramos is a free agent at season’s end, meaning tomorrow’s surgery is likely to end his tenure with the Mets. In all, he pitched just 38 2/3 innings with the team and turned in a 5.59 ERA with a characteristically high strikeout rate (10.9 K/9) against a bloated 6.3 BB/9 mark that was lofty even by Ramos’ standards. He’s never struggled to miss bats, but even at his best, Ramos was often wild, averaging 4.8 walks per nine innings pitched during a largely successful run with the Marlins.

While a solid season with the Mets would’ve primed Ramos for a multi-year deal in free agency, it now seems likely that he’ll have to settle for a one-year pact with a low base and plenty of incentives, if not a minor league deal with an invitation to prove his shoulder’s health in Spring Training next year.

As for the Mets, they’ve been operating without Ramos for three weeks or so anyhow, so his loss won’t change much in the short-term. His season-ending injury, however, does eliminate the possibility of flipping him to a contender at the deadline. The return on Ramos, even if healthy and effective, wouldn’t have been especially high considering that $9.225MM salary, though the Mets could’ve at least saved some cash and/or added a modest prospect or two to the minor league ranks.

Mets Notes: deGrom, Syndergaard, Wheeler, Familia, Bruce

By Steve Adams | June 19, 2018 at 5:15pm CDT

Having experienced a precipitous fall after an 11-1 start to the season, the Mets are reportedly willing to listen to offers on the majority of their roster. While the Mets are said to have a preference to retain their controllable players, Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News argues that the team would be foolish not to listen to offers on aces Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard. Ackert cites a source with another NL club in agreeing with yesterday’s report from Ken Rosenthal that the Mets are more willing to discuss trading Syndergaard than deGrom, despite the fact that Syndergaard comes with an extra year of club control. There’s a divide in the Mets’ front office about whether to even entertain offers, per Ackert, who adds that there’s nothing serious in the works at this time despite a number of teams checking in on both pitchers. The Yankees, she adds, have yet to make an inquiry.

More out of Queens…

Mike Puma of the New York Post writes that some in the industry believe the Mets are making deGrom and Syndergaard available without the intent of actually trading either and could instead then push alternatives like Zack Wheeler on the teams that inquire about deGrom and Syndergaard. Wheeler is only controllable through 2019, has a longer injury history and doesn’t have great overall results on the season, of course, but he’s been quite a bit better over the past month (3.68 ERA, 3.01 FIP, 34-to-11 K/BB ratio in 36 2/3 innings). In addition to Wheeler, Puma adds that both Asdrubal Cabrera and Jeurys Familia are likely to be marketed in trades in the coming weeks.
Following yesterday’s trade of Kelvin Herrera from the Royals to the Nationals, Tim Britton of The Athletic examines what type of impact the swap could have on the Mets’ efforts to deal Familia (subscription required). Familia and Herrera are both 28 years of age, both free agents at season’s end, and are both earning just north of $7.9MM. The two are also rather comparable from a statistical standpoint — at least on a career basis. As Britton notes, the early nature of Herrera’s trade will remove an alternative for bullpen-needy teams to pursue if and when the Mets shop Familia, which could help the Mets to create more demand and further drive up the bidding. Noting that the Royals’ return was somewhat lessened by the fact that the Nats took on all of Herrera’s remaining salary, Britton opines that the Mets should be willing to pay the remainder of Familia’s salary to enhance the deal, adding that the club should aim to procure one high-end talent rather than several lower-tier players (as they did when acquiring three bullpen prospects from the Red Sox in last July’s Addison Reed swap).
The Mets announced this afternoon that they’ve placed Jay Bruce on the 10-day disabled list due to a sore right hip, recalling right-hander Tim Peterson from Triple-A Las Vegas in his place. Bruce’s trip to the DL is retroactive to Monday. That injury leaves the Mets without a true backup outfielder on the roster. Brandon Nimmo, Michael Conforto and Jose Bautista are the most experienced outfielders on the roster, but it seems Dominic Smith will be logging time in the outfield as well; he’s starting in left field tonight, the team announced. MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo tweeted earlier that Wilmer Flores may also see some time in the outfield in the near future.

Mets Listening To Trade Offers On Veteran Players

By Steve Adams | June 18, 2018 at 3:19pm CDT

3:19pm: MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo tweets that while the Mets are indeed listening to offers, no deals should be expected in the short-term. Despite the recent run of poor play, the Mets will take another few weeks to see if they can turn things around before committing to a sale.

11:05am: With the Mets mired in an abysmal slump that has seen the team go 3-11 in the month of June, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports in his latest notes column (subscription required) that they’re “open for business.” While the Mets understandably prefer to hang onto controllable players like Michael Conforto, Brandon Nimmo, Seth Lugo, Robert Gsellman and Jacob deGrom, Rosenthal notes that they’ll at the very least entertain offers for virtually anyone on the roster.

It’s been fewer than two weeks since Mets general manager Sandy Alderson called the chances of a major summer sell-off “very remote,” though Alderson admitted at the time of his comments that “circumstances could change” his stance. It’s perhaps telling that in the 13 days between the publication of those two stories, the Mets have gone just 3-8 and scored a paltry 25 runs in a span of 11 games. In the interim, they’ve seen Noah Syndergaard and Yoenis Cespedes suffer setbacks in their recoveries from injury and revealed that reliever AJ Ramos is weighing season-ending surgery to repair his ailing shoulder.

Of course, the two reports can also coexist without contradicting one another. Dealing some short-term pieces this summer would hardly constitute a “major” sell-off, after all. And, generally speaking, Alderson was speaking out against the possibility of a full tear-down more than he was against smaller trades around the margins of the 25-man roster.

While there’s been no shortage of speculation surrounding deGrom, there’s been little indication that the Mets would truly be open to moving their ace. In fact, Rosenthal goes so far as to write that the Mets would actually be more open to trading Syndergaard, who has an additional year of control, though that’s perhaps more a statement on their unwillingness to move deGrom than it is their willingness to part with Syndergaard. Clearly, either pitcher would require a trade partner to surrender an absolutely farm-gutting haul of talent if the Mets were to even consider budging. The Mets shouldn’t be expected to shop either player aggressively.

[Related: New York Mets depth chart and New York Mets payroll]

More realistic trade pieces would include impending free-agents Asdrubal Cabrera, Jeurys Familia and Devin Mesoraco. Struggling lefty Jerry Blevins has a lengthy track record despite poor results in 2018, and there’s time yet for him to right the ship and hold appeal to another organization. The Mets also have a number of intriguing players who are controlled only through the 2019 season, including Todd Frazier, Zack Wheeler, Anthony Swarzak and Wilmer Flores. As is the case with Blevins, lefty starter Jason Vargas has a solid track record but poor 2018 results to date, though he’s begun to turn things around of late (3.91 ERA, 23 strikeouts, seven walks in his past 23 innings).

Certainly, the focus of many readers will be on just what type of package it’d take to pry away one of the Mets’ two young aces, deGrom or Syndergaard, but it seems likelier that they’ll instead focus on moving shorter-term pieces. Rosenthal adds that, in particular, the Mets will be “motivated” to move Familia given that they’re not likely to make him a qualifying offer following the season. As such, they’d stand to lose him for nothing if he’s not dealt this summer.

Familia did just have a minimal stint on the DL for shoulder soreness, but if he can prove that to be a non-issue, he’d certainly hold appeal. He’s earning $7.925MM this season (with $4.45MM yet to be paid out) and has worked to a 2.70 ERA with 9.9 K/9, 3.0 BB/9, 0.3 HR/9 and a 48.8 percent ground-ball rate in 30 innings.

Mets Notes: Cespedes, Astros, Bruce

By Mark Polishuk | June 17, 2018 at 12:50pm CDT

The latest out of Citi Field…

The Mets faced a tough challenge from the Astros in the race to sign Yoenis Cespedes in the 2016-17 offseason, John Harper of the New York Daily News reports. The Astros reportedly made Cespedes a similarly-sized offer (four years, $110MM) that the outfielder was “strongly considering,” according to one Mets source. Another Mets-connected person tells Harper that Cespedes’ “considerations were [to play for a] contender, money, no-trade clause, and [to] train in Florida near his ranch,” and Houston checked off all of those boxes but was unwilling to provide full no-trade protection. Mets GM Sandy Alderson was also wary about the no-trade clause, yet ultimately agreed to add it to the deal in order to get Cespedes back in the fold. That “separator” in talks, as another Mets source described it, may have also been necessary to retain Cespedes given his issues with former manager Terry Collins, which Harper relates at length. It’s safe to assume that the Astros don’t harbor much regret about missing on Cespedes, as they instead spread out their money to acquire multiple players (Josh Reddick, Brian McCann, Carlos Beltran) that helped them win the World Series, while Cespedes has been hampered by injuries since re-signing with New York.
Earlier this week, Joel Sherman of the New York Post floated a hypothetical trade of struggling players, with the Mets sending Jay Bruce to the Rockies in exchange for Bryan Shaw. There isn’t any indication that either team is considering such a deal, and a trade of either player would be pretty surprising since both Bruce and Shaw just signed three-year free agent contracts last winter. Sherman’s argument, however, is that this trade would solve some problems on both rosters — Colorado would get a veteran bat who could help in the corner outfield or at first base, while the Mets would add a long-term relief piece and clear up some of their own cluttered first base/corner outfield situation. Shaw could also be helped by a reunion with Mickey Callaway, his former pitching coach in Cleveland.
Speaking of Bruce, the veteran hasn’t played in the last three games due to some lingering injuries in his back, hip, and foot. Newsday’s Tim Healey writes that Bruce had two days fully off before being available off the bench on Saturday, though he wasn’t used. These minor injuries aside, Bruce said that he has felt healthy this season, which makes his mediocre numbers (.216/.297/.327 with three homers in 232 PA) all the more frustrating. “I feel so close. I hit balls at people. Fly out, just miss the ball. Stuff you really can’t control,” Bruce said. Advanced metrics partially bear out Bruce’s assessment — he only has a .263 BABIP, and his .344 xwOBA is far beyond his actual .275 wOBA. His 32.7% hard-hit ball rate, however, is below his career average and his .111 Isolated Power (ISO) total is by far the lowest of his career.

Quick Hits: Brewers, Mariners, Ichiro, Mets, R. Hill, Rays

By Connor Byrne | June 16, 2018 at 10:34pm CDT

Rival executives expect the Brewers to be aggressive in targeting starting pitching help this summer, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (video link). The Brewers’ rotation has been a middle-of-the-pack group to this point, as it entered Saturday 13th in the majors in ERA (3.92) and 19th in fWAR (3.8). Of course, the unit has been without its top starter from 2017, Jimmy Nelson, who’s working back from the right shoulder surgery he underwent last September and should return sometime this season. He and another starter acquired from elsewhere could help the Brewers hold on to a playoff spot, which they were unable to do a year ago during an 86-win campaign. Rosenthal also points to catcher and shortstop as positions the Brewers could upgrade, though he notes they’re “unlikely” to be in play for Manny Machado at the latter spot.

Amateur Draft Signings: 6/15/18

By Jeff Todd | June 15, 2018 at 10:49pm CDT

Here are the day’s deals of note from the top few rounds of the draft (rankings referenced are courtesy of Baseball America, MLB.com, Fangraphs and ESPN’s Keith Law — with the scouting reports from MLB and Fangraphs both coming free to the general public) …

The Giants agreed to a $1.5MM bonus with second-round choice Sean Hjelle, according to MLB.com’s Jim Callis (via Twitter). A towering righty from the University of Kentucky, Hjelle was taken with the 45th overall choice, which came with a $1,587,600 pick allocation. He ranked as high as thirtieth on pre-draft lists, earning that placement on the Baseball America board. Evaluators seem to think the polished collegiate hurler is likely to be a steady, back-of-the-rotation arm, though he isn’t generally seen as possessing immense upside.
Mets second-rounder Simeon Woods-Richardson will receive a $1.85MM bonus to forego his commitment to the University of Texas, Callis tweets. That lands above the $1,485,100 slot value at the 48th overall pick. While the right-handed hurler has shown quite a lot of promise at times, there are concerns that he has not consistently maintained that high level throughout his starts. Grades were all over the map, with BA highest at #76. Clearly, the Mets believe they can tap into the tools.
The Brewers will save some money against the slot value on Micah Bello, their competitive balance round B pick, MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo reports on Twitter. He’ll receive a $550K bonus, leaving the club with some excess pool space from the 73rd overall pick ($824,900 slot). A Hawaiian high-school outfielder, Bello did not draw top-100 billing but placed 121st on BA’s board. He’s credited as a quality overall hitter who may yet have a bit of upside, with some speed and perhaps some untapped power potential, though it’s not clear whether he’ll remain an up-the-middle defender as a professional.

« Previous Page

Load More Posts

Show all

Headlines

Mets Rumors

Navigation

MLBTR INFO

Connect