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Mets Notes: Lucroy, Bruce, Conforto, Walker

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Despite the glut of injuries that have hit the Mets’ pitching staff and lineup, and despite the slumps from several expected contributors, the Mets currently have a one-game lead for the top Wild Card spot in the National League. And with 10 of their 13 remaining games coming against the two worst teams in their division (the Phillies and Braves), New York has put itself in position for a return trip to the postseason. Fangraphs puts the Mets’ playoff odds at 88.9 percent, while Baseball Prospectus pegs them at 89.5 percent.

A few notes on the current NL Wild Card favorites…

  • John Harper of the New York Daily News spoke to a Mets official who admitted that the Mets badly wanted to acquire Jonathan Lucroy at the non-waiver trade deadline but found the asking price to be too substantial. The Brewers were insistent that any package for Lucroy be headlined by one of Michael Conforto or top shortstop prospect Amed Rosario, and the Mets simply weren’t comfortable trading either player. “We knew how much Lucroy would help us, but we couldn’t do it,” the unnamed source told Harper. “And looking back now, it was still the right decision. Conforto and Rosario are young, cornerstone players.”
  • Conforto, of course, is receiving scarce playing time because the Mets’ apparent fallback option, Jay Bruce, has occupied right field regularly since being acquired on Aug. 1. Bruce, though, hasn’t hit at all for the Mets, and Harper writes that his struggles have been pronounced enough that the team could have to consider buying out his $13MM option rather than exercising it. If anything, Harper argues, the struggles of Bruce in New York illustrates how badly the Mets need to retain Yoenis Cespedes, and shedding Bruce’s $13MM commitment could help them to achieve that end.
  • Interestingly, Harper also writes that there’s a “faction” among Mets decision-makers that would like to see Conforto shift over the first base full-time in 2017, but there’s still no consensus as to whether the Mets will retain Lucas Duda. The 30-year-old Duda was just activated from the disabled list yesterday after missing months due to a stress fracture in his back. He hasn’t been able to take the field much this season (41 games) and is due a raise on his $6.7MM salary in his final scheduled trip through arbitration this winter. I’m of the belief that a $7-8MM salary for a healthy Duda is a no-brainer, but only the Mets know how likely it is that Duda’s back issues will pose a lingering problem into the 2017 season.
  • Speaking of back issues, Neil Walker tells Kristie Ackert of the Daily News that he considers the Mets a “good fit” for him, but he’s remaining open to all possibilities in free agency as he heals from season-ending back surgery. Walker is already pain-free in his back and can walk and perform resistance-band exercises, but he says it’ll be three months before he can resume baseball activities. Walker adds that his agent doesn’t believe the injury will severely hamper his free agent stock. “To be honest with you, I have been playing with this for over two-and-a half-years, this has been something I have been living with,” the second baseman said. “I can tell you the last three days, I’ve gotten out of bed and my back hasn’t hurt and I haven’t had that for about two-and-a-half years.”

Latest On Jonathan Lucroy Sweepstakes

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10:54pm: The Rangers could view a strike for Lucroy as a way to improve their pitching, given his highly-regarded work behind the plate, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. With Texas finding high asking prices on the pitching market, the report suggests, the club could make a move for a group of Milwaukee pieces that might include Lucroy, a quality reliever, and possibly even a starter.

3:41pm: There’s a mystery team involved on Lucroy, tweets Jon Heyman of Fan Rag, and it isn’t the Red Sox or the Mariners. Those two clubs would certainly have been among the plausible suitors for the veteran.

2:49pm: The Braves have inquired on Lucroy, according to Rosenthal (via Twitter). At present, though, it doesn’t appear as if the sides are likely to strike a deal. Atlanta’s interest is limited, it seems, because it would need to extend the veteran receiver in order to justify trading him.

The teams is “wary of paying twice” — first in the swap, then in a hypothetical extension — though certainly that’s the price of poker when  just a fact of life for a club that would competing with teams that have a much higher present need for a top-quality backstop. It’s no sure thing, either, that Lucroy himself would agree to a new contract.

12:29pm: Yesterday, Milwaukee asked teams with interest to make offers of a certain “minimum standard,” Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (Twitter links). It’s not entirely clear whether the request was for best and final offers, but Rosenthal adds that discussions are still taking place.

Among several teams to put their chips on the table are the Mets, per the report. With the Brewers still evaluating their options, multiple teams remain in the hunt.

11:27am: Jonathan Lucroy is one of the most talked-about names on the trade market right now, and ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick adds some context to the complications in working out a deal, reporting the eight teams to which Lucroy can block a trade (Twitter link). Lucroy can block trades to the Twins, Angels, Athletics, Padres, Mariners, Nationals and, most interestingly, the Indians and Tigers. Both of the two latter teams have been connected to Lucroy in trade rumors this week, though both Crasnick and his colleague Jayson Stark were told this morning that the Tigers are no longer in the picture (links to Twitter).

Cleveland’s presence on Lucroy’s no-trade list certainly doesn’t preclude a deal from happening — Lucroy has candidly stated to the media that he wants to play for a contending team on multiple occasions in the past six months — but it does further complicate matters for the Indians. While Lucroy’s postseason aspirations could make him willing, to some extent, to waive his no-trade rights, he could also wield that clause as leverage in an attempt to coerce the Indians into an extension or, at the very least, restructuring his contract to give him a raise on next year’s wildly affordable $5.25MM salary.

The Indians are said to be discussing Lucroy and left-hander Will Smith with the Brewers, but they face competition even if the Tigers and Astros are out of the market, as has been reported recently. The Rangers, Red Sox and Mets — none of whom are on his no-trade list — have all still been linked to Lucroy, and a premium player of his value figures to draw widespread interest. (Indeed, FanRag’s Jon Heyman last night again mentioned a mystery team in the mix.) The Mets were said to offer a package centered around Travis d’Arnaud, which was quickly dismissed, but FOX’s Ken Rosenthal reported last night that the two side “re-engaged” on trade talks. ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin adds a bit more detail to that story this morning, reporting that the Brewers circled back with the Mets and proposed a counter-offer that “was not out-of-hand rejected.” The Mets, he notes, have no intention of dealing either shortstop prospect Amed Rosario or first base prospect Dominic Smith, though.

Quick Hits: Mets, Yankees, Pirates, Tribe

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The Mets are unlikely to trade shortstop prospect Amed Rosario at this year’s deadline, reports Marc Carig of Newsday, with a source close to the team telling Carig that the 20-year-old “is going nowhere.” The 40-34 Mets haven’t involved themselves in any significant trade talks yet, according to Carig, who notes that Rosario would probably have to go in order to land the club a high-end player (Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy, for instance). Rosario, who has spent most of the season at the High-A level and slashed .309/.359/.442 with three home runs and 13 steals in 290 plate appearances, entered the campaign as ESPN Keith Law’s 42nd-ranked prospect (Insider required). Baseball America (58th) and MLB.com (70th) also regard Rosario highly.

More from New York City and two other major league destinations:

  • The Yankees sat designated hitter Alex Rodriguez against Twins right-hander Tyler Duffey on Sunday, which could be the start of the Bombers only deploying the 40-year-old versus southpaws, writes George A. King III of the New York Post. In a minuscule sample size of just 55 plate appearances, Rodriguez has posed a legitimate threat this year versus lefties, against whom he has hit .275/.327/.510. Conversely, in 123 trips to the plate against righties, Rodriguez’s line is an unusable .200/.236/.348. Whether this is the beginning of the end of A-Rod’s long tenure in pinstripes is unclear, though releasing him could be an option eventually, according to ESPN’s Andrew Marchand (Twitter link). Rodriguez, who’s on a $20MM salary this year and has another $20MM coming to him in 2017, is sitting on 695 home runs – 350 of which have come in a Yankees uniform. Thus, it’s hard to imagine the club moving on from A-Rod before he joins Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron and Babe Ruth in the 700 club.
  • Pirates ace Gerrit Cole is making progress in his recovery from a strained right triceps, but it’s still unknown when the right-hander will return, per Adam Berry of MLB.com. Cole landed on the disabled list retroactive to June 11 and could have come back as early as Sunday, but he just threw off a mound for the first time since going on the DL on June 14. Cole could rejoin the Bucs’ rotation sometime in July, according to Berry, though it might not happen until after the All-Star break. With Cole unavailable, Chad Kuhl is a good bet to remain in the Pirates’ starting five. The 23-year-old righty made his major league debut Sunday against the Dodgers and threw five innings of three-run ball, striking out five and giving up four hits and four walks.
  • Winners of eight straight, the Indians own the third-best record in the American League (44-30) and are five games ahead in their division, but they still must make multiple additions to ensure a playoff berth for themselves, opines Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer. Specifically, the Indians need to augment their offense – perhaps by picking up an outfielder – and bullpen, Hoynes contends. Unsurprisingly, Hoynes doesn’t expect the Indians to move either of their top prospects, outfielders Bradley Zimmer and Clint Frazier, for a rental; however, he doesn’t dismiss the possibility of the Tribe dealing one for a player who’s under control for multiple years beyond 2016.

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