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Van Wagenen: Mets Will Make Qualifying Offer To Zack Wheeler

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The Mets will extend a one-year, $17.8MM qualifying offer to right-hander Zack Wheeler before today’s 5pm ET deadline, general manager Brodie Van Wagenen announced at today’s press conference to introduce new manager Carlos Beltran (h/t: Joel Sherman of the New York Post, on Twitter).

That’s been the expected outcome for several months now, and Wheeler is widely expected to reject the offer in search of a more lucrative deal in free agency. If and when Wheeler does sign a new contract elsewhere, the Mets will be entitled to a compensatory pick in the 2020 draft.

Wheeler, 29, should have little trouble trouncing that $17.8MM, one-year offer in free agency. The market features a pair of clear-cut No. 1 starters in Gerrit Cole and Stephen Strasburg, but Wheeler is very arguably the No. 3 free-agent arm of the winter and will likely be treated as such by several teams. As laid out recently by MLBTR’s Connor Byrne, Wheeler is the second-hardest-throwing starter on the market (trailing only Cole), and no free-agent starter limited hard contact better than Wheeler in 2019. He also ranks in the top 10 among free agents in terms of highest strikeout percentage and lowest walk percentage.

While some may point to Wheeler’s 3.96 ERA in 2019 and zero in too heavily on that figure, his overall body of work over the past two seasons is largely excellent. In his past 55 Major League starts, Wheeler has pitched to a collective 3.47 ERA (3.27 FIP) with 9.0 K/9, 2.4 BB/9, 0.82 HR/9 and a 43.1 percent ground-ball rate. He’s done so while playing in front of a porous defense that ranks 29th among MLB teams with a ghastly -169 Defensive Runs Saved across the past two seasons.

Qualifying offer notwithstanding, it’d be a surprise to see Wheeler command anything less than a strong three-year deal, and even that’s a rather cautious and conservative outlook. The demand for pitching among contenders will be strong, and Wheeler is trending up at a time when the trade market offers virtually nothing in terms of top-tier arms. For clubs looking to add a starter with front-of-the-rotation upside but unwilling to approach the $30MM+ annual salaries that Cole and Strasburg will likely command, Wheeler and lefty Madison Bumgarner are the next-best options.

Latest On Mets’ Coaching Staff

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While their division rivals in Washington D.C. wrap up a 2019 World Series parade, the Mets are dealing with a few open questions in regard to the 2020 coaching staff of Carlos Beltran. The newly minted manager is expected to have input in the reshaping of the staff, and former Met skipper Terry Collins has “been discussed” for the team’s bench coach role, according to a piece from Mike Puma of the New York Post (link).

Collins and Beltran spoke before one of the latter’s managerial interviews this postseason, with the two maintaining a “tight” relationship after overlapping in the New York dugout back in 2011, according to Anthony Dicomo of MLB.com (link); DiComo emphasizes that the team has not yet reached out to Collins about the bench coach post.  As the reporter notes, Collins has been under club payroll in recent years as a special assistant.

There may also be change afoot at the hitting coach position. Chili Davis earned “strong reviews” from club officials last season for his work in guiding a young offense, but the veteran coach is searching for a multi-year deal after his contract expired on Friday, according to Puma.

Along the baselines, Gary DiSarcina is characterized in Puma’s piece as “likely” to return, although it is uncertain if it will be in the third base coach role he held last year. First base coach Glenn Sherlock was given permission last month to seek other jobs and is not likely to be a member of Beltran’s staff next year.

Mets Tab A Familiar Face In Beltran

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  • Managing the Mets is not the easiest job in baseball, but in tabbing Carlos Beltran for the role, New York found someone who knows what to expect and is ready to handle the unique challenge of managing in Queens, per The Athletic’s Tim Britton. Beltran is a long-respected clubhouse leader, and though he’ll be new to the managing role, he is no stranger to the New York spotlight. Ownership rarely takes a backseat for the Mets, but Beltran’s existing relationships will help him in that department as well. The biggest obstacle to a successful tenure for Beltran remains in Atlanta, DC, and Philadelphia.

Mets Name Carlos Beltran Manager

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The Mets have officially named Carlos Beltran their next manager. He’ll reportedly earn approximately $3MM over the guaranteed three-year term, with a club option to follow.

Carlos Beltran | Thomas B. Shea-USA TODAY Sports

If indeed a deal is ticked and tied, it’ll launch a fascinating new chapter in Mets history. Beltran, a recently retired former Mets star who left the organization on less-than-pleasant terms, will pair up with ever-interesting sophomore GM Brodie Van Wagenen as the club does battle in a tough NL East.

Beltran, 42, had previously interviewed for the Yankees’ managerial opening that went to Aaron Boone. While he missed on that gig, Beltran joined the Bronx-based organization’s front office as a special advisor. That experience ended up functioning as a transition time for Beltran, who’ll now get back in uniform.

When last he donned Mets duds, Beltran was still a star-level performer. Though there were indications of sore feelings when he departed via trade in the middle of the 2011 season, things worked out well enough for the Queens denizens. Beltran hit well enough over the first half of that year — his final of a seven-season contract — to return a highly valuable player in the form of Zack Wheeler. While we likely won’t get the interesting optic of Beltran removing Wheeler from games — the righty is expected to receive a qualifying offer but decline it in favor of the open market — that swap still makes for an interesting reference point.

Beltran shouldn’t have any problems commanding respect in the clubhouse and with the media. He’s a rightly revered figure in the game and will likely check into Cooperstown during his time as the Mets skipper — so long as his tenure at the helm of the dugout is longer than that of his predecessor. Mickey Callaway came from quite a different place when he entered the gig, but did finish with a flourish over the final two-thirds or so of the 2019 campaign. That wasn’t enough to save his job.

The expectations will be lofty for Beltran’s debut campaign, at least within the organization. It’s postseason or bust for Van Wagenen and co., particularly after doubling down on the existing core slate of players at the 2019 trade deadline. It is difficult to fully assess the odds of the club cracking the postseason for the first time since 2016, given that we don’t yet know just what the roster will look like when camp breaks early next year. As we explored recently, the organization faces some obvious obstacles to improving the on-field product it will entrust to Beltran.

Sid Rosenberg of TalkRadio 77 WABC had the first word on Twitter. Anthony DiComo of MLB.com independently reported the news (via Twitter). Marly Rivera of ESPN (via Twitter) reported the deal structure, with Bob Nightengale of USA Today (Twitter link) covering the salary.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Mets Decline Option Over Juan Lagares, Outright Panik & Hart

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The Mets have declined their club option over outfielder Juan Lagares. Meanwhile, second baseman Joe Panik and lefty Donnie Hart each elected free agency after being outrighted.

Lagares was sure to be bought out at $500K after a brutal season at the plate. His option would’ve cost the team $9.5MM, so it was an easy call to say goodbye.

Plagued by injuries in recent years, Lagares was healthy in 2019. But his performance fell apart in all respects. Typically a valued defender, the 30-year-old hit just .213/.279/.326 while drawing negative defensive grades.

Panik, picked up in the middle of the season, projected to earn $5.1MM in arbitration. Though he had a solid showing upon his return to his native New York, that was too big a tab to pick up.

The 29-year-old Hart threw 7 2/3 scoreless innings this year for the Brewers and Mets, with just one appearance coming in New York. In 44 2/3 Triple-A frames, he worked to a 4.43 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9. He’ll be looking for work as a lefty specialist, likely on a minor-league deal.

Mets Reportedly Narrow Managerial Search

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The Mets’ managerial search is down to two names, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports (via Twitter). Former Mets outfielder Carlos Beltran and former Astros bench coach/current ESPN analyst Eduardo Perez are the last two men standing. MLB Network’s Jon Heyman recently tweeted that Milwaukee bench coach Pat Murphy was out of the running, though Heyman suggested shortly before Feinsand that Twins bench coach Derek Shelton was still involved alongside Beltran and Perez.

Neither Beltran nor Perez has any big league managerial experience, but Perez did manage a pair of winter ball clubs in Puerto Rico and managed Team Colombia in the 2013 World Baseball Classic. In addition to a brief stint as the bench coach in Houston, Perez spent a pair of seasons as the Marlins’ hitting coach earlier this decade. Beltran, who only retired as a player after the 2017 season, has spent his short post-playing days as a special advisor to Yankees general manager Brian Cashman.

Hiring Perez would, in many ways, mimic the crosstown Yankees’ hiring of Aaron Boone and the Cubs’ recent hiring of David Ross. Both were retired players hired away from ESPN jobs, though Perez, unlike that duo, does have the aforementioned coaching/managing experience. Beltran, notably, would jump from player to manager even more quickly than Ross did — if he is indeed hired. Ross retired after winning a World Series in 2016, while Beltran retired after winning a World Series in 2017. Perez was reported by USA Today’s Bob Nightengale last week to be the “clear front-runner,” but the search then carried on into a third round of interviews.

The Mets’ managerial search has dragged out even longer than the GM search that led the organization to hire then-CAA-agent Brodie Van Wagenen late last October. While a whopping eight teams entered the offseason in search of a new skipper, most identified a smaller set of initial candidates than New York. The Mets, meanwhile, not only conducted first-round interviews with a wide slate of candidates, they also carried a significant list of hopefuls all the way into a third round of interviews. (Most other organizations seemingly only went through two rounds.) At least five candidates — Perez, Beltran, Shelton, Murphy and Nats first base coach Tim Bogar — seemingly advanced to this stage.

The Mets, Pirates and Giants are the three remaining clubs that have yet to name a manager for the 2020 season. The Angels (Joe Maddon), Phillies (Joe Girardi), Cubs (Ross), Royals (Mike Matheny) and Padres (Jayce Tingler) have all hired new skippers since the regular season ended.

Latest On Mets’ Managerial Search

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OCT. 31: Bogar is no longer in the running for the job, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports. Bogar’s elimination from the race “raises the chances” the Mets will hire Beltran, Perez, Shelton or Murphy, per Sherman.

OCT. 29: Depending upon one’s perspective, the Mets have either been exceedingly thorough or maddeningly indecisive in choosing their next skipper. As of yesterday, the club had advanced to a third round of interviews with at least five candidates still under consideration by ownership and GM Brodie Van Wagenen.

We’ll use this post to track the day’s developments in the hiring search. There are two threads of reporting on the topic at the moment.

Jon Heyman of MLB Network sees things beginning to move towards a conclusion. He tweets that only four men appear still to be under consideration: Tim Bogar, Eduardo Perez, Derek Shelton, and Carlos Beltran. That would indicate that recent entrant Pat Murphy has been dropped from the search — and that there aren’t any other candidates floating around.

That is decidedly not the take of Andy Martino of SNY.tv (links to Twitter). He suggests that there are other candidates in play and that the process remains rather open-ended.

Specifically, per Martino, Triple-A skipper Tony DeFrancesco has interviewed and may still be in the mix. The long-time minor-league manager took over the Mets’ top affiliate for Pedro Lopez, who had lasted only one season after replacing the inimitable Wally Backman.

By Martino’s reckoning, that may not be the only wrinkle left. He suggests there may still be “more going on than we know” behind the scenes in Queens. That could yet include “high-profile names” on the “periphery” of the process.

As we noted yesterday, there’s no real reason that the Mets need to rush through the final decision here. Several other teams have already lined up skippers and the other remaining searches appear to be focused on other names (or, in the case of the Pirates, temporarily stalled out). Still, it’s rather interesting to see such a lengthy and free-ranging hiring process, the well-publicized nature of which is sure to invite plenty of questions (and perhaps, ultimately, second-guessing) once the organization finally does set its course.

 

Mets Holding Third Round Of Managerial Interviews

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The Mets are moving ahead with a third round of managerial interviews, as Andy Martino of SNY.tv reported last night. Somewhat surprisingly, the list hasn’t really been pared down much to this point.

In for a third interview are long-known candidates Carlos Beltran, Tim Bogar, and Derek Shelton. (Joel Sherman of the New York Post noted Shelton’s continued inclusion on Twitter.) Also still in the mix is Eduardo Perez, who was said to be a “clear frontrunner” just days ago but remains in a large group of possibilities.

Luis Rojas once seemed to have a solid shot at the gig, but he now appears to be out of the mix. But Brewers bench coach Pat Murphy has taken his place after flying under the radar earlier in the process. Murphy is still in the hunt as well.

Now that Murphy has been unveiled, is there still a mystery candidate lurking? Martino has continually cited that possibility, though MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo tweets that it seems the field has been set.

New York owner Fred Wilpon will meet with the five candidates — and, presumably, any others if they should be inserted into the process. Precisely how the decision will be made remains to be seen, though surely it’ll mostly come down to a discussion between Wilpon, COO Jeff Wilpon, GM Brodie Van Wagenen, and a few top advisors.

The timeline is likewise not yet evident; DiComo suggests that it may take a bit longer due to the fact that Bogar still has one or two games left to coach in the World Series. It doesn’t appear as if any of the Mets’ candidates are in active demand from other organizations, so the New York club can continue to take its time reaching a final decision.

Pat Murphy In Consideration For Mets’ Managerial Opening

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With the Mets casting a wide net in the search for their next manager, another name has come to light as the rumored “mystery candidate.” Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that Brewers bench coach Pat Murphy has already had multiple interviews with the team and is in the mix for the job.

Whether the talk of a “mystery candidate” elicits an eye-roll or curiosity, prepare to hear more of the same: Andy Martino of SNY reports that there are more unnamed candidates in the running, and that Murphy is not the “bombshell” candidate that has attracted so much speculation.

Murphy, 60, has worked as Craig Counsell’s right-hand man since the 2016 seaosn, a job he earned after a six-year tenure managing in the Padres’ minor-league system and serving as the interim Major League manager for 96 games in 2015. He has extensive experience coaching in the college ranks, serving as the head coach of the Notre Dame baseball program from 1988-1994 and coaching at Arizona State from 1995-2009.

Murphy will join a narrowing pool of candidates for the Mets job, though that pool is certainly being narrowed down. Eduardo Perez has been rumored as a “front runner” while Tim Bogar, Carlos Beltran, Luis Rojas, and Derek Shelton have all been brough back for second interviews. If that group indeed comprises the finalists, it appears the Mets will once again turn to a manager with no prior Major League managerial experience—depending on how one counts Murphy’s interim stint with the Padres. The team has considered candidates from a wide range of backgrounds, and after missing out on Joe Girardi, it’s a bit of an unusual group. However, the search seems to be nearing its conclusion, though a third round of interviews likely remains.

2020 Managerial Search Tracker

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Eight teams were looking for new skippers in October, and loads of potential candidates have been either rumored or directly connected to these job openings. We’ll do our best to keep things straight in this post….

Angels

Hired

  • Joe Maddon: former Cubs/Rays manager, former Angels bench coach/interim manager

Also Interviewed

  • John Farrell: former Red Sox/Blue Jays manager
  • Buck Showalter: former Orioles, Yankees, Rangers and Diamondbacks manager
  • Johnny Washington: Padres hitting coach

Reportedly Received Consideration

  • Joe Espada: Astros bench coach
  • Joe Girardi: Hired by Phillies
  • Eric Chavez: Angels special assistant

Cubs

       Hired

  • David Ross: former Cubs/Red Sox catcher, current ESPN analyst

Also Interviewed

  • Joe Espada: Astros bench coach
  • Joe Girardi: Hired by Phillies
  • Gabe Kapler: former Phillies manager, former Dodgers director of player development
  • Mark Loretta: Cubs bench coach
  • Will Venable: Cubs first base coach

Giants

       Hired

  • Gabe Kapler: former Phillies manager, former Dodgers director of player development

Also Interviewed

  • Joe Espada: Astros bench coach
  • Gabe Kapler: former Phillies manager, former Dodgers director of player development
  • Pedro Grifol: Royals quality control and catching coach
  • Mark Kotsay: Athletics quality control coach, former Padres hitting coach & baseball operations special assistant
  • Hensley Meulens: Giants bench coach
  • Matt Quatraro: Rays bench coach, former minor-league manager
  • Will Venable: Cubs first base coach
  • Ron Wotus: Giants third base coach

Reportedly Received Consideration

  • Raul Ibanez: Dodgers special assistant
  • Mike Matheny: former Cardinals manager

Mets

Interviewing Twice

  • Carlos Beltran: Special assistant to Yankees GM, former MLB outfielder
  • Tim Bogar: Nationals first base coach
  • Eduardo Perez: ESPN analyst, former Astros bench coach, former Puerto Rican Winter League Manager of the Year
  • Derek Shelton: Twins bench coach, former Rays hitting coach
  • Luis Rojas: Mets quality control coach
  • Pat Murphy: Brewers bench coach

Interviewed Once

  • Joe Girardi: Hired by Phillies
  • Skip Schumaker: Padres first base coach, former Padres baseball ops/player development assistant, former MLB utilityman
  • Mike Bell: Diamondbacks director of player development

Reportedly Under Consideration

  • Buck Showalter: former Orioles/Yankees manager
  • Mike Matheny: former Cardinals manager

Padres

Hired

Also Interviewed

  • Ron Washington: Braves third base coach, former Rangers manager
  • Brad Ausmus: former Angels/Tigers manager
  • Rod Barajas: Padres interim manager, former bench coach
  • Bob Henley: Nationals third base coach
  • Mark Loretta: Cubs bench coach

Reportedly Received Consideration

  • Joe Maddon: Hired by Angels
  • Mike Matheny: Former Cardinals manager

Pirates — Search “paused” while team searches for new GM

Interviewing

  • Ryan Christenson: Athletics bench coach, former minor-league manager
  • Derek Shelton: Twins bench coach, former minor-league manager
  • Stubby Clapp: Cardinals first base coach, former minor-league manager
  • Matt Quatraro: Rays bench coach, former minor-league manager
  • George Lombard: Dodgers first base coach, former minor-league manager

Reportedly Under Consideration

  • Jeff Banister: Pirates special assistant; former Rangers manager, Pirates bench coach
  • Mike Bell: Diamondbacks director of player development
  • Mark Kotsay: Athletics quality control coach, former Padres hitting coach & baseball operations special assistant
  • Joe Espada: Astros bench coach

Phillies

Hired

Also Interviewed

  • Buck Showalter: former Orioles, Yankees, Rangers and Diamondbacks manager
  • Dusty Baker: Special advisor to Giants; former Nationals/Reds/Cubs manager

Royals

Interviewing

  • Vance Wilson: Royals bullpen coach

Reportedly Under Consideration

  • Pedro Grifol: Royals quality control and catching coach
  • Mike Matheny: Royals special advisor
  • Dale Sveum: Royals bench coach
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