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Francisco Lindor

MLBTR Poll: Will Mets Extend Francisco Lindor?

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The Mets are seemingly running out of time to extend their prized offseason acquisition, shortstop Francisco Lindor. The 27-year-old, who earned four All-Star nods with the Indians before joining the Mets in a blockbuster winter trade, has made it clear he will not negotiate a new contract when the regular season begins Thursday. That means he could become the leading free agent on the board next offseason.

Although the Mets and Lindor are closing in on his self-imposed deadline, they’re not yet moving toward an agreement, per Andy Martino of SNY.tv. The Mets have made Lindor a franchise-record offer worth around $325MM over 10 years, Martino writes, and Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets it’s “believed” the club will not make him another proposal before his deadline. Expectations across the industry are that the two sides will hammer out an agreement, Martino relays, though Lindor is looking for a deal in the 12-year, $400MM range, according to Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News. Indeed, Lindor’s camp has made the Mets a 12-year, $385MM counteroffer, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

It appears there is a wide gap to close, but it should help the Mets’ chances that they have baseball’s richest owner, Steve Cohen, who had dinner with Lindor on Saturday. Cohen addressed the Lindor situation in a pre-recorded online Q&A with Mets announcer Wayne Randazzo and fans (via Ken Davidoff the New York Post), saying, “It takes two people to sign a contract, not one.” He added: “Well, we have a deadline [March] 31, today is the 29th. It either will or won’t in the next two days.” 

What do you think? Will Cohen & Co. get it done? (Poll link for app users)

Mets Notes: Lindor, Montgomery, Roster Cuts

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Mets owner Steve Cohen had dinner with Francisco Lindor on Saturday night, ostensibly to see if they could close the gap in their extension negotiations, per MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo. The Mets appear willing to cross the $300MM threshold, but that’s not a guarantee to keep Lindor in Queens long-term. The two sides continue to talk, however, and there is growing optimism that an accord will be reached before Lindor’s deadline of opening day. While we wait, let’s see how the rest of the Mets roster is shaping up…

  • The Mets released left-hander Mike Montgomery today, per Tim Healey of Newsday (via Twitter). Montgomery was thought to have a shot at making the Mets bullpen as a non-roster invitee, but he now heads back to free agency. The 31-year-old is best known for getting his first career save to close out the Cubs’ game seven World Series victory in 2016. He never quite rose to the level that many expected of him, but he nevertheless has put together a six-year career as a swingman for the Mariners, Cubs, and Royals. The Royals acquired him from the Cubs midway through the 2019 season with the plan to finally install him regularly into their starting rotation. He made 13 starts the rest of the way covering 64 innings with a 4.64 ERA/4.74 SIERA. He logged just 5 1/3 innings in 2020, however. Montgomery had pitched well in spring training, but the Mets would have been on the hook for $2.25MM if they rostered him, notes MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo (via Twitter). He had an opt-out clause in his contract for today.
  • The Mets also announced a series of roster cuts today. Jerry Blevins, Jerad Eickhoff,  Caleb Joseph, Jose Peraza, Mallex Smith, and Arodys Vizcaino were informed that they will not make the opening day roster, per Mike Puma of the New York Post (via Twitter). Blevins, 37, will head to the Mets’ alternate site in Brooklyn. He’ll be joined there by fellow southpaw Stephen Tarpley, who was optioned to Triple-A. Tarpley has two options remaining.

Mets Make Initial Extension Offers To Lindor, Conforto

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MARCH 25: Lindor and the Mets remain in talks, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, who tweets that “it feels like there’s a bit of optimism” they’ll reach an agreement.

MARCH 22: As of now, there isn’t much optimism that the Mets and Conforto will reach a deal, Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweets.

MARCH 21: Conforto told reporters (including Mike Puma of the New York Post) that negotiations were ongoing, though didn’t commit on any specific details.  In regards to any deadline on talks, Conforto said “Ideally, I would not like” negotiations to extend beyond Opening Day.

MARCH 19: The Mets have made an initial extension offer to shortstop Francisco Lindor and to right fielder Michael Conforto, reports SNY’s Andy Martino. No deal is close with either player at this time. The New York Post’s Mike Puma tweets that there’s no real movement in talks at this point.

The initial offer to Lindor, according to Martino, clocked in slightly below $300MM in guaranteed money. Lindor and agent David Meter unsurprisingly countered with a number “well over” $300MM in total guarantees. While the team’s first offering didn’t begin with a three, Martino adds that the Mets are “almost certainly” willing to go to that $300MM mark to sign Lindor.

That said, a $300MM mark as long seemed something of a floor for Lindor in extension talks. Manny Machado received ten years and $300MM from the Padres two years ago — albeit at a younger age. In the 24 months since that time, we’ve seen Bryce Harper (13 years, $330MM), Mike Trout (10 years, $360MM on top of his contract’s two preexisting years), Mookie Betts (12 years, $365MM) and Fernando Tatis Jr. (14 years, $340MM) eclipse the $300MM mark as well.

The length of the Mets’ offer and Lindor’s counter isn’t known, though given his age (27), it stands to reason that he could also be in line for a deal spanning a decade or more at $30MM-plus annually. The Harper and Tatis deals don’t come with that $30MM AAV, but that’s by design in Harper’s case, as he took a longer deal to deflate the AAV and reduce the Phillies’ luxury hit. The Tatis contract, meanwhile, includes all of his arbitration seasons, which naturally suppresses the annual rate. A Lindor deal, assuming it begins in 2022 — he’s already signed for the ’21 season — would be solely be buying out free-agent seasons.

There are no details known yet on the Mets’ offer to Conforto, though as a Scott Boras-represented All-Star who is set to hit free agency as well this winter, history suggests a deal could be tough to put together. It’s well documented that Boras clients largely tend to go to the open market, though the narrative that they “never” sign extensions is also something of an overstatement. Carlos Gomez, Carlos Gonzalez, Jered Weaver and Elvis Andrus all inked extensions in the early 2010s, and more recent examples include Stephen Strasburg, Jose Altuve (his second extension) and Xander Bogaerts. There’s certainly precedent for an extension, even if it’s not commonplace.

Lindor has made known that he prefers to cut off talks once the season begins, although Boras declined to state there was any such endpoint with regard to Conforto. Asked by Martino whether April 1 (Opening Day) was a firm deadline for a deal, he replied: “Michael is focused on the season and his performance. Not addressing any contract questions.” That deliberately vague answer doesn’t tip his hand one way or another, but it’s semi-notable that Boras chose not to limit the negotiation period to a confined window, as many players and agents seem to do. Also notable is the fact that the aforementioned Strasburg extension (seven years, $175MM) came in May 2016 — well after Opening Day.

Mets fans are strongly hoping to see one or both players extended beyond the 2021 season, although even if no deal comes together, it’s always possible the club could still pull off a deal in free agency next winter. The Mets needn’t look beyond their own division to see a prominent example of a star player who couldn’t come to terms on an extension with his club but ultimately stayed there via free agency: Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto.

Indians Owner Paul Dolan On Team Name, Lindor, Francona

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Indians owner Paul Dolan discussed several noteworthy topics regarding the team with the Akron Roundtable on Thursday, fielding questions from Amanda Rabinowitz of WKSU and a virtual audience, per Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com (links: 1, 2). Here are some of the issues Dolan touched on during the Q&A…

  • The Indians are going to change their name, but the move may take longer than expected. While Dolan wants this to be the franchise’s final season with its current name, “It could be sometime in the middle of this year whether we know we’ve got it down where we can do it for 2022,” he said. “If not we’d have to push it to 2023. We’re working hard to get it done by then, but there’s no certainty in that.” Dolan added: “There aren’t many words in the English language that somebody doesn’t own in some shape or form. Particularly in the sports realm, that’s a real challenge.”
  • Dolan also addressed Cleveland’s decision to trade its most recognizable player, shortstop Francisco Lindor, to the Mets during the winter. “We could afford a player like Lindor. We just couldn’t afford to build a team around him,” stated Dolan, who pointed out that it’s difficult for a small-market team to dedicate so much payroll to one player. It was no surprise the Indians dealt Lindor, as Dolan all but admitted in 2019 they’d eventually trade the four-time All-Star when he told the team’s fans to “enjoy him” while he was still on the roster. Lindor is down to his last year of team control, in which he’ll earn $22.3MM, and could score a $300MM-plus contract by the 2022 campaign. With Lindor gone, the Indians are projected to open 2021 with a paltry $53MM payroll, Jason Martinez of Roster Resource estimates.
  • Terry Francona dealt with health problems last season and only managed 14 games as a result, but Dolan gave the 61-year-old a major of confidence Thursday. “I think he’s with us until he’s no longer managing,” Dolan declared. “He’s under contract for a couple more years (through 2022), but I feel like we’re now in a situation where he’s going to be here until he decides not to manage.” Francona, who previously won two World Series with the Red Sox, took over the Indians in 2013 and has helped them to a 673-519 regular-season mark with five playoff appearances and an American League pennant.

Latest On Potential Francisco Lindor Extension

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In February, just over a month after the Mets acquired him from the Indians, shortstop Francisco Lindor said he would not be willing to discuss a contract extension during the season. That continues to be the case, the four-time All-Star told Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News and other reporters Tuesday.

“Like I said earlier, I will not be negotiating during the season,” Lindor stated. “I will go to free agency. If something carries on during the season, it’s not fair for me, it’s not fair for the team. I got to give everything I got into winning baseball games. So if it doesn’t happen in spring training, I will go to free agency. We’ll talk in November, December, whenever free agency starts.”

Based on his deadline, New York only has two more weeks to extend Lindor – a pending free agent who was its crown jewel offseason acquisition – but he revealed that the two sides have begun preliminary talks. The club gave up a package consisting of young infielders Andres Gimenez and Amed Rosario, right-hander Josh Wolf and outfielder Isaiah Greene for Lindor and righty Carlos Carrasco as part of an aggressive winter.

With Lindor on track to lead next offseason’s free-agent class, the Mets knew when they swung the deal that it would be a challenge to prevent the 27-year-old from testing the open market several months from now. However, considering the Mets have the majors’ wealthiest owner in Steve Cohen, they have a realistic shot to retain Lindor for what’s likely to be a long-term contract worth at least $300MM. Lindor noted Tuesday that he’s “very comfortable” as a Met, which should only increase their chances of reaching a new deal with him before the month is out.

Quick Hits: Mets, Lindor, Red Sox, Cordero, González

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The Mets and Francisco Lindor will explore extension talks “in earnest” this week, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). Lindor has set opening day as the deadline for an extension, but the Mets have not appeared overly concerned by the limited timetable thus far. They are presumably confident in their ability to work something out in a short amount of time, or less concerned with the prospect of Lindor hitting free agency. If there were a year to allow a star like Lindor to test the market, after all, next winter is the time as there are plenty of potential options in the much-vaunted 2022 free agent class. While we continue to wait for progress on this front, let’s check in on some roster news from the Red Sox…

  • Newly-acquired Franchy Cordero may not be ready for opening day, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com. Cordero has yet to clear COVID-19 protocols. It would be understandable to be judicious with someone in Cordero’s position – a not-yet established big-league regular joining a new franchise. Especially considering Cordero’s spotty injury history, the Red Sox may want to prioritize getting Cordero’s year started with a head full of steam. The Red Sox are planning to start the season with a short bench, but Cordero’s delay could mean an early roster spot for Michael Chavis or Marcus Wilson. By adding Marwin González and Kiké Hernandez this winter, the Red Sox have afforded themselves plenty of roster flexibility.
  • González figures to find himself playing left field against lefties even when Cordero returns, writes the Athletic’s Chad Jennings. But he won’t be much help in center, whereas Cordero could see some time in the middle. While they wait for Cordero – assuming Jarren Duran doesn’t make the roster – Boston is without a clear every down option in center. Alex Verdugo and Kiké are the two players on the roster most clearly prepped for the spot, but Boston does seem to favor Duran joining the team at some point during the 2021 season. Not only has the youngster received favorable comparisons to Grady Sizemore this winter, but he’s gone 5-for-11 with a .500 OBP through their first six spring games. Though that means very little in terms of statistical significance, first impressions at this level can certainly impact an organization’s viewpoint on a player.

East Notes: Mets, Orioles, Nationals

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Mets President Sandy Alderson said that he expects extension talks with Francisco Lindor and Michael Conforto to begin soon, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today (via Twitter). Both players are scheduled for free agency after the 2021 season. Lindor, for his part, has made clear that he will not negotiate an extension beyond opening day, so the window is now for Alderson and the Mets. Alderson also put forth Noah Syndergaard’s name as a potential extension candidate as well, notes Tim Healey of Newsday (via Twitter). Syndergaard, of course, is on the way back from Tommy John surgery and won’t likely appear until mid-season, but he will also be a free agent at year’s end. Extending those three would certainly cost a chunk of change, but the Mets do have roughly $100MM coming off their payroll next offseason. Interestingly, Marcus Stroman was not mentioned as an extension candidate. His $18.9MM salary could help provide the necessary raises next season for Lindor, Conforto, and Syndergaard. While we’re here, let’s check in with some other clubs in the East…

  • Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins is giving up switch-hitting to bat lefty full-time, writes Rich Dubroff of Baltimorebaseball.com. After a horrendous 2019, Mullins bounced back somewhat in 2020, doing enough to stay on the Major League roster to appear in 48 games and 153 plate appearances with a palatable .271/.315/.407 slash line. Mullins is trying to make the Orioles roster as a fourth outfielder, though there are certainly more at-bats available if he proves capable. Giving up his right-handed swing could force him into a more straight platoon, but he hasn’t been helped by his work on the short side of that split anyhow. For his career, Mullins has hit just .146 as a right-hander with a 26 wRC+ (versus 90 wRC+ as a lefty). The split was even more pronounced last season when he earned a 118 wRC+ as a left-handed hitter versus 34 wRC+ from the right side. If nothing else, Mullins should be able to simplify his routine by focusing on one swing.
  • Erick Fedde may have stumbled upon a solution to his wandering fastball command, writes Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post. In his first start of the spring, Fedde turned to his cutter, a pitch that has long eluded him as he has tried to establish himself as a Major League pitcher. Fedde’s cutter did not help his cause in either 2018 or 2020, per Fangraphs pitch values, though in 2019 it was his best offering. Fedde is competing for the Nats fifth starter job, though he’s not likely to win the job out of camp. With one option remaining, the Nationals have more roster flexibility with Fedde than with his competitors Joe Ross and Austin Voth. For Fedde to stick long-term, he probably needs both his sinking fastball and his cutter to work with more consistency.

Extension Notes: Lindor, Correa, Bieber, Bichette

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New Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor revealed that there’s “mutual interest” in an extension, though he believes “it’s too early” for serious talks to start, per Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com. Lindor said in early January, shortly after the Mets acquired him from Cleveland, that he wouldn’t want to discuss a new contract during the season. His feelings on that subject seemingly remain the same, as he notes, “It would be unfair for me and the rest of the team to have ongoing conversations on an extension, and we show up on Opening Day and our mind is somewhere else.” Considering Lindor’s stance, the Mets figure to spend the next month-plus trying to lock up the 27-year-old, who has been a premier player throughout his career and who was the biggest acquisition the club made in the offseason.

  • The Astros’ Carlos Correa could join Lindor as part of a star-studded class of free-agent shortstops next winter, but he would also like to secure a new deal before the upcoming season, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com writes. “If the Astros want to extend me, I would like to get it done before the season starts,” Correa said. “I feel good, my body feels great and I feel I’m going to have such a great season. Once the season starts, I don’t want to be involved and distracted with those conversations.” Correa, 26, put up uncharacteristically mediocre production in 2020, but he stayed healthy for the first time in a few seasons. He avoided arbitration Feb. 6 with an $11.7MM agreement for 2021, but he and his agent haven’t heard from the Astros about a long-term deal since then, McTaggart relays.
  • Indians ace Shane Bieber hasn’t discussed a long-term deal with the club, but he’d be willing to do so, Zack Meisel of The Athletic tweets. The Indians don’t necessarily have to urgently sign Bieber, who won’t be eligible for arbitration until after 2021 or free agency until the end of 2024. But with the club’s low budget in mind, it could behoove it to extend the reigning AL Cy Young winner sometime soon.
  • Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette told Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet and other reporters that he’s open to an extension, but the team hasn’t made him an offer so far. The 22-year-old Bichette has been a revelation for the Blue Jays dating back to his 2019 debut, having slashed .307/.347/.549 with 16 home runs and eight stolen bases in 340 plate appearances. Fortunately for Toronto, it isn’t in danger of losing Bichette in the near future, which would explain the lack of urgency in inking him to an extension. Bichette still has two pre-arbitration years remaining and isn’t slated to reach free agency until after 2025.

East Notes: Lindor, Yankees, Springer, Mets, Jays, Braves

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The Yankees never made a formal offer to the Indians in talks regarding Francisco Lindor, writes Buster Olney of ESPN. The two teams kicked around frameworks involving Lindor before Cleveland dealt him and right-hander Carlos Carrasco to the Mets, but the Yankees evidently never put an official proposal on the table. It seems the Yankees were deterred by Lindor’s lofty projected arbitration salary for 2021, which eventually landed at $22.3MM. New York’s main focus all winter has been agreeing to a long-term deal with DJ LeMahieu, which the team finally pulled off this week.

More out of the East divisions:

  • The Mets and Blue Jays have been the two teams most closely connected to George Springer this winter. Jon Morosi of MLB.com feels the Mets have the geographical upper hand, noting that the Connecticut native and former UConn star would prefer to play close to home. (Springer’s home town of New Britain is approximately a two-hour drive from Queens, compared to seven-plus hours to Toronto). Of course, geographical ties of this sort are often discussed as potential tiebreakers for prominent free agents but are rarely enough to overcome significant discrepancies in teams’ respective contract proposals. Indeed, Morosi acknowledges the possibility the Mets eventually turn their attention elsewhere, particularly if they manage to sign reliever Brad Hand.
  • More from Olney, who notes that the Braves “appear highly unlikely” to re-sign outfielder Marcell Ozuna. The 30-year-old slugger had an incredible season in Atlanta after signing a one-year deal last offseason. Ozuna is now in line for a much bigger multi-year accord this winter. That doesn’t fit the general approach of Braves’ GM Alex Anthopolous, who has tended to shy away from longer-term deals since taking over baseball operations. Just last winter, the Braves watched Josh Donaldson, who had starred on a similar pillow contract in 2019, walk for a four-year deal with the Twins. MLBTR projects a $72MM accord over that same length for Ozuna.

Mets, Francisco Lindor Avoid Arbitration

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The Mets and newly acquired shortstop Francisco Lindor have avoided arbitration with a $22.3MM agreement, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. Lindor is a SportsMeter client.

Lindor’s settlement checks in even higher than the $17.5MM to $21.5MM arbitration projection MLBTR made for him earlier in the offseason. The four-time All-Star was still in Cleveland then, but with the team knowing it wouldn’t extend him before free agency next winter, it decided last week to send him to the Mets in a mega-trade.

Unlike Cleveland, the Mets look well-equipped to meet the 27-year-old Lindor’s demands on an extension. Lindor figures to eclipse the $300MM mark on his next contract, but that shouldn’t serve as a roadblock to deep-pocketed new owner Steve Cohen. The Mets may have to act quickly, though, as Lindor stated this week that he does not want to negotiate a contract during the season.

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