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Mets Notes: Wright, Cespedes, Asdrubal, Free Agency

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While he obviously wasn’t able to suit up for the Mets in their Wild Card loss the other night, veteran third baseman David Wright says he’s “really positive and really confident that this neck surgery’s going to hold up.” As Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports, though Wright hasn’t done anything beyond walking yet in terms of physical activity, it seems he’s already regained quite a bit of strength. The biggest tests from a baseball perspective are yet to come, of course. He’s hoping to be cleared for baseball activity in December.

Here’s more from New York:

  • There’s no reason the Mets can’t bring back star outfielder Yoenis Cespedes yet again, David Lennon of Newsday suggests. In fact, the club is more confident now than it was last year that a reunion would be possible, with Lennon suggesting that the team believes it has approximately even odds of landing him in free agency. Still, New York isn’t interested in participating in a major bidding war and likely won’t compete past a certain point, he indicates.
  • Shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera is getting checked out for the possibility of knee surgery, as Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com tweeted, but no determination has been reported. The balky knee slowed Cabrera at times, but it didn’t stop him from finishing the regular season with a highly productive .280/.336/.474 batting line and 23 home runs. His two-year contract looks to be a bargain, and it’s worth noting that the Mets have an option for 2018 as well.
  • It’s worth wondering what the Mets might do in free agency, especially if they don’t land Cespedes, and Joel Sherman of the New York Post has some ideas on the matter. He thinks the time is right for the team to pursue fireballing lefty Aroldis Chapman, and also suggests that a push for slugger Edwin Encarnacion would make sense. It’s an interesting thought, though the same basic reasoning could lead numerous other teams to make lofty bids for these two players — who’ll likely be among the most expensive to sign this winter.

Latest On Mets After Wild Card Loss: Yo, Walker, Bruce, Duda

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The Mets lost a tough one last night, falling to the Giants and Madison Bumgarner when Conor Gillaspie blasted a three-run bomb off closer Jeurys Familia. Thus begins an interesting offseason for the organization, which continues to have plenty of major league talent but also faces many questions. The action won’t get underway in earnest for a few weeks, but ESPNNewYork.com’s Adam Rubin provides some important information on some significant players:

  • Unsurprisingly, the Mets expect star outfielder Yoenis Cespedes to opt out of the remaining two years of his deal after another outstanding season. Rubin says the team is expressing pessimism about a reunion, but does intend to try after smartly re-signing him last winter. The current thinking is that the Mets will offer something on the same order as Cespedes’s most recent deal, with some front-loaded cash, a relatively modest term of years, and an opt-out after the first season. Whether that’s enough remains to be seen, but may depend upon whether another team is willing to make a truly significant guarantee after watching Cespedes post another top-notch campaign.
  • It is clear, Rubin suggests, that Cespedes truly enjoys playing in New York, so perhaps that’s the ace in the hole for Sandy Alderson and co. The Cuban star said last night that he “hope[s]” to return to New York, as Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets, though that’s approximately the same line he has repeated when asked about the subject over the course of the season. All told, it seems possible but hardly likely that the Mets will lay enough cash on the table to bring him back.
  • The Mets intend to make Neil Walker a qualifying offer so long as he continues to progress following his back surgery. In fact, it’s possible that the organization will be interested in a multi-year pact with the second baseman, per the report. There could well be some opportunity for such an approach, given that Walker’s upcoming free agency figures to be impacted somewhat by the procedure. Though he has suggested that it’s actually a good thing — it ought to fix a long-standing problem — any uncertainty is problematic when guaranteed money is on the table. And entering the market with draft pick compensation would only increase the risk for Walker. That seems to leave some daylight for a new contract that would keep him in New York for a few years. Rubin notes, too, that Walker has remained involved even after his season ended, suggesting that he truly enjoyed being with the club.
  • In some part, the presence of Jay Bruce suggests that the team isn’t fully convinced it can afford Cespedes, as the lefty slugger provides another corner outfield option through his $13MM option. Rubin says the team was already going to commit that cash before Bruce ended his rough second half on a high note. That does begin to tilt the Mets’ lineup to the left side, as both Curtis Granderson and Michael Conforto already feature as southpaw-swinging outfield options. And as Rubin also notes, the late-season return of Lucas Duda makes it nearly certain that he’ll be tendered, plugging another lefty bat in at first base. Duda’s injury-limited campaign means he won’t be owed much of a raise on his $6.725MM salary in his final year of arbitration.

Yoenis Cespedes Discusses Opt-Out

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7:55pm: Cespedes has already walked back his comments somewhat, as Mike Puma of the New York Post writes. Asked about his earlier comments, Cespedes replied (through a translator): “I’ve said it before: My intentions, of course, are to be here for three years and if I can spend the rest of my career with the Mets I would.” Cespedes, though, said he hasn’t made a final decision as to whether he’ll opt out. “My focus is just to play baseball and help the team win, hopefully make it to the playoffs. I let my agents worry about all that.”

Certainly, it’d be fairly stunning if Cespedes passed up the opportunity to hit the open market, though the possibility of course remains that his agents could work out an extension or that he could simply opt out and re-sign for a considerably larger sum than the $47.5MM he’d be guaranteed through 2018 under his current contract.

1:33pm: Mets star outfielder Yoenis Cespedes says that he still intends to stay for the final two years of his contract with the Mets, as Bob Klapisch and Matt Ehalt of the Bergen Record report. Of course, there’s still time to go before he has to decide on his opt-out clause, which still looks like the better financial decision from his perspective.

Cespedes landed in New York via trade, but seemingly prioritized a return when he hit the open market last winter. He spurned larger guarantees from other organizations to stick with the Mets for a three-year, $75MM commitment with the opt-out opportunity coming after just one season. (It’s important to note that the other reported contracts on the table had lower average annual values and lacked the opportunity to re-enter the market.)

Though he has long maintained that he was signing on for the full three years that the contract could cover, Cespedes has done nothing but improve his market thus far in 2016. While he has missed a bit of time due to injury, the 30-year-old has compiled a robust .295/.365/.570 batting line that nearly matches the overall output he gave the Mets last year down the stretch.

That could spell big dollars if Cespedes does end up changing his mind and declining what amounts to a two-year, $47.5MM player option. Though he’ll surely come with a qualifying offer attached this time around, and is obviously a year older, the Cuban star also now has two consecutive years of stellar play to support his case. There other other top power bats and other outfielders available, but Cespedes currently holds the top spot in the free agent power rankings of MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes.

Whether or not New York would make another push to retain Cespedes remain unclear. It’s theoretically possible the club could weigh an extension offer, or pursue the veteran slugger if he triggers the clause. But it’s largely beyond question that the organization would be overjoyed if he decides to stay. Even with both Curtis Granderson and Jay Bruce under contract for another year (the former via guarantee, the latter an option), Juan Lagares set to return from injury, and younger players like Michael Conforto and Brandon Nimmo on hand, the remaining commitment to Cespedes represents a reasonably-priced route to top-line production that would be hard to count on from other sources.

Mets To Place Yoenis Cespedes On 15-Day DL

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The Mets will place outfielder Yoenis Cespedes on the 15-day DL, manager Terry Collins told reporters including MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo tonight (Twitter link). The star slugger has been playing through a quad issue, but hope that extended rest will help him get back to full capacity.

Cespedes appeared in tonight’s action, but felt added discomfort while at the plate, per James Wagner of the New York Times (via Twitter). He has been quite productive despite the lingering injury. The concern, it seems, was that the club would need to allot frequent rest and limit Cespedes’s exposure to center field just to manage the problem, which would ultimately fail to address it while leaving him at risk of exacerbating things.

It’s still a tough blow to a New York organization that fell to 55 and 52 with tonight’s loss, putting them 8.5 games out of the NL East. While the recent addition of Jay Bruce ought to help offset the loss of offensive productivity, the hope had been that he’d be adding to the middle of the lineup. Brandon Nimmo will return from Triple-A to round out the roster.

Latest On The Mets’ Deadline Plans

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The Mets aren’t likely to make a big splash at the trade deadline, as Mike Puma of the New York Post notes that the team simply doesn’t have the prospect depth to acquire a big bat as they did last season with Yoenis Cespedes.  A bullpen addition is still in the team’s plans, however, and as Puma reports in a separate tweet, the Mets could add one reliever prior to August 1 and then another in the August waiver period.  Just yesterday, Puma reported that Jeremy Jeffress, Joe Smith and Chris Withrow were a few of the relief names on the Mets’ radar.

It could be a quiet deadline in another sense for the Mets should the team suddenly hit a slump, as Newsday’s Marc Carig reports that the Mets wouldn’t become deadline sellers in the event that they were to fall back in the standings over the next week.  In fact, the Mets would likely still look to buy even if they did have a losing streak, as the team is looking ahead to a weak September schedule as an opportunity to make a late run at a wild card, if not the NL East if the Nationals slow down.

At least a couple of notable teams (the Royals and White Sox) are considering becoming deadline sellers after a dip in form, and the Yankees have long been seen as candidates to unload veterans as August 1 approaches.  Any of these teams could become big players in the trade market if they made some of their established stars available, and the Mets could follow suit by shopping Cespedes or Neil Walker.  In regards to those two, however, Carig reports that the team prefers to receive draft pick compensation in the form of the qualifying offer if either or both leave in free agency this winter.  The Mets also don’t have interest in dealing Bartolo Colon, which isn’t surprising given the injury questions within their rotation.

Trade News & Rumors: Hazen, Espinoza, Padres, Huntington, Cespedes

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Here’s the latest from around baseball as we move another day closer to the August 1 trade deadline…

  • Red Sox GM Mike Hazen discussed his team’s recent flurry of moves with CSNNE.com’s Sean McAdam in a video interview.  Because the Sox had “a fairly clear need on our end…it allowed us to be focused on what we wanted to be aggressive on,” and thus Hazen said the team could act quickly to address those needs before the trade market began to thin out.  Getting a controllable pitcher like Drew Pomeranz was in part a priority since there aren’t many quality starting arms available in free agency this winter.  The full interview is well worth watching, as Hazen covers multiple topics about the Red Sox as they head into the second half.
  • Before the Padres finally landed pitching prospect Anderson Espinoza from the Red Sox in the Pomeranz trade, San Diego team president Mike Dee tells Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune that his club made two earlier attempts at landing Espinoza’s services.  The Padres also asked about the 18-year-old righty at last year’s trade deadline, and again last offseason when the Friars and Sox were negotiating the Craig Kimbrel deal.  In the same interview, Dee also discusses how the organization will be more entirely focused on improving the on-field product in the coming years.
  • Pirates GM Neal Huntington discusses several Bucs-related topics with Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and other reporters, including how the Pirates are exploring the trade market for pitching but finding very high prices.  “You continue to look externally, but your bar’s set fairly high in terms of what your acquisition needs to be,” Huntington said.  “That acquisition comes with an extreme acquisition cost. We will weigh, are we better going with our own guys, is there something that makes sense from the outside, and that will play out over the next couple of weeks.”
  • In another Huntington interview, he discussed the Pirates’ pitching search and other items with Jim Duquette and Jim Bowden on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (audio link).
  • Yoenis Cespedes told reporters (including ESPN.com’s Adam Rubin) that he would like to play left field for the rest of the season, based on both personal preference and a desire to avoid aggravating his quad injury.  Cespedes has made 61 starts in center this season (with 13 in left) to accommodate the Mets’ roster construction, though if Cespedes is better off in left, it creates a bit of a jam for New York.  Michael Conforto would be forced into right field, leaving Curtis Granderson, Juan Lagares and Alejandro De Aza all in the center field mix (assuming Conforto hits well enough to retain a regular job).  This is just my speculation, but I wonder if the Mets could explore moving Granderson, Lagares and/or De Aza at the deadline as part of a trade for more reliable center field help.

Yoenis Cespedes, Noah Syndergaard Leave Game With Apparent Injuries

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11:12pm: Both players suggested that there isn’t cause for alarm after the game, as Rubin reports. Syndergaard said he did not experience any elbow pain, but was dealing with “a little shoulder fatigue.”

Cespedes, meanwhile, said that he’s dealt with a similar issue and only missed a handful of days. He expressed hope that he’d avoid a DL stint. Skipper Terry Collins also sounded an optimistic tone, saying that the club would likely just go with a short-handed roster for the time being rather than rushing into any DL determinations.

10:14pm: Manager Terry Collins explains: “[Syndergaard] just said his arm went dead. It got tired on him.” (Via Rubin, on Twitter).

9:23pm: Syndergaard was suffering from “arm fatigue” when he was pulled, the Mets announced. The issue was “not elbow-related.”

8:19pm: Already dealing with the loss of Matt Harvey for the year, the Mets now have to new injury situations to watch. Star center fielder Yoenis Cespedes left the action with what’s being called a quadriceps strain, while budding staff ace Noah Syndergaard left in the middle of the fifth inning with an unknown malady.

It’s far too soon to know whether either player could be dealing with a significant issue, but the surrounding circumstances add to the concern. And that’s all before considering the fact that these two players have been the organization’s two best through the first half of the season.

In the case of Cespedes, ESPNNewYork.com’s Adam Rubin suggests on Twitter that the quick diagnosis of a strain — not a “mild” strain, or discomfort, say — is unusual for the tight-lipped organization. A full analysis will be required before the team will know more, but there’s at least some cause for added attention.

That’s all the more true for Syndergaard. While we’ve heard both team and player downplay the issue, he has dealt with a barking elbow at various points of the season. Syndergaard has a reputedly small bone spur, which is hardly uncommon, but this isn’t the first time he’s been pulled early. Something obviously triggered the move, as Syndergaard was pulled in the middle of the fifth inning while sitting at just 79 pitches. James Wagner of the New York Times tweets that his final two fastballs clocked in at 95 and 94 mph, which is well below his ridiculous 98+ average velocity but perhaps isn’t overly concerning in and of itself.

NL Notes: Syndergaard, Cespedes, Dodgers, Myers, Gray, Cards

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The Mets and their fans had a scare earlier today when both Noah Syndergaard and Yoenis Cespedes departed from a game early, but the team gave fairly positive updates on that pair and on Zack Wheeler tonight (links to Twitter via David Lennon of Newsday). There’s no structural damage in Syndergaard’s elbow. He’s free to resume his normal routine and will begin taking some anti-inflammatory medication to help with the discomfort he’s experienced twice this season. Cespedes received a cortisone shot for a sprained left wrist but is day to day and isn’t headed to the disabled list at this time. Wheeler, too, received a cortisone shot for a nerve issue in his elbow but has no structural damage.

As Mets fans breathe a sigh of relief, here are a few other notes from around the Senior Circuit…

  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports points out that the Dodgers spent more on international amateurs (players that fall within international signing guidelines) than six organizations spent on their Major League payroll to open the season. Los Angeles spent about $96MM this period ($48MM on players plus about $48MM in luxury taxes), and that figure doesn’t even factor in the six-year, $30MM deal signed by right-hander Yaisel Sierra. Rosenthal spoke to commissioner Rob Manfred about the Dodgers’ spending, and Manfred said that there will be a strong focus on changes to the international system in the upcoming wave of CBA negotiations. “…when you see that kind of disparity in any part of the system, it generally suggests to us that the system is not functioning in a way that promotes competitive balance,” said the commissioner. “Rest assured, we’re going to be making proposals to address that.”
  • The Padres remain “active” in trade talks, per Jon Morosi of MLB.com (via Twitter), but one name that hasn’t seen much chatter is Wil Myers. It seems that San Diego is not terribly interested in discussing the outfielder/first baseman. The 25-year-old will hit arbitration eligibility after the season, and will be in line for a nice payday if he can keep hitting at anything like his current .290/.336/.529 pace. Myers has already knocked a career-high 16 long balls in 301 plate appearances, and finally seems to be coming into his own after inconsistency and injury issues in recent years. San Diego paid a high price to get Myers before the 2015 season, with talented young players Joe Ross and Trea Turner moving to D.C. in a notable three-team swap, and it appears for now as if the club would like to see its investment pay off on the field rather than cashing him in for prospects.
  • The Rockies pulled Jon Gray from today’s start with what the team is terming “arm fatigue,” and he’ll be reevaluated tomorrow, writes Nick Groke of the Denver Post. Gray threw just 40 of his 80 pitches for strikes and admitted that he’s felt some fatigue in his arm for his past couple of outings, but “it’s just now getting to a serious point.” Manager Walt Weiss said that Gray’s arm felt “heavy” today, and the right-hander himself said he had more trouble with his control than he ever has. “I’ve never had great control, but this, I didn’t know where this was going,” he said. “I wanted to leave it all out there and grind through it, but it wasn’t working.”
  • Brayan Pena is nearing the end of his 20-day rehab window with the Cardinals, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, which could mean that the team will part ways with veteran backup Eric Fryer. The 30-year-old Fryer has been great in a very limited role with St. Louis, hitting .406/.457/.469 in just 35 plate appearances (despite appearing in 22 games). However, Pena is on a two-year contract signed with the Cardinals last offseason, so even though he’s struggled through 11 rehab games as he recovers from knee surgery, he figures to be in the team’s plans.

Injury Notes: Syndergaard, Cespedes, Holland, Montero, Cole

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The Mets were hit with a pair of troubling injuries today, as Noah Syndergaard exited the game after six innings because his right elbow “flared up” (via MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo) and Yoenis Cespedes exited with a wrist injury (per ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin). Both players are being evaluated by doctors this afternoon, and the extent of their respective injuries remains unclear for the time being. However, manager Terry Collins conceded to Rubin that the Cespedes issue “is a concern,” as Cespedes dealt with a similar issue in 2015. And, as DiComo points out, Syndergaard has already experienced elbow discomfort once this season, although he didn’t miss a start. Certainly, the loss of either player for even a couple of weeks would be a notable blow to the Mets, who currently trail the Nationals by four games in the NL East.

As we await further word on the Mets, here are some more notable injury storylines from around the game…

  • The Rangers announced today that Derek Holland has been placed on the 15-day disabled list due to inflammation in his left shoulder. Texas didn’t include any sort of timeline, though the press release announcing the move did reference the fact that he’s eligible for activation on June 6. Holland has struggled quite a bit of late, and his 5.20 ERA is especially troubling due to the fact that his K/9 rate (5.3), BB/9 rate (3.1), ground-ball rate (36.2 percent) and average fastball velocity (91.8 mph) have all trended in the wrong direction this season. Knee and shoulder injuries have plagued Holland over the past two seasons; this year’s 72 2/3 innings are already the most he’s thrown in a big league season since 2013. The Rangers brought up right-hander Luke Jackson to take his place on the active roster.
  • UPDATED: Manager Joe Maddon said following today’s game that Cubs catcher Miguel Montero checked out OK after being forced to exit the contest with a knee injury (via ESPN Chicago’s Jesse Rogers, on Twitter). Montero initially sustained a right knee injury after Brandon Moss slid into home on a play at the plate following a chopper to third base. (That’s not to say Moss’ slide was dirty, as he slid into the lane left open by Montero, as can be seen in the MLB.com video of the play.) Montero was able to walk to the mound and back to home plate under his own power, though he was visibly limping and wincing. Willson Contreras, who was recently promoted from Triple-A Iowa, entered the game in Montero’s place and hit a two-run homer in place of Montero. An injury to Montero would’ve likely opened the door for more playing time for the top prospect, but Contreras will continue to be worked in alongside Montero and veteran David Ross.
  • MLB.com’s Adam Berry tweets that Gerrit Cole will not be rejoining the Pirates on the first day that he’s eligible to be activated from the DL. Cole has been playing catch but has yet to throw off a mound as he works his way back from a strained triceps muscle. Cole’s DL stint was backdated to June 11.

Heyman’s Latest: Teheran, Ventura, CarGo, Lucroy, Myers, Turner

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Writing at todaysknuckleball.com, Jon Heyman breaks down the woes of the Dodgers and Angels. Both teams face difficult decisions over the summer. The Dodgers, at least, still seem positioned to contend and could play an interesting role on the trade market.

Here are more notes from the column:

  • Amidst the considerable amount of Julio Teheran chatter, one Braves source tells Heyman, “I don’t see the Braves trading Teheran.” That’s a less-definitive statement than the one Heyman received regarding Freddie Freeman, as a source told him the first baseman is “totally off limits,” which lines up with GM John Coppolella’s offseason comments. Heyman adds that the Braves have “tried to dangle” Erick Aybar in trade talks, but he has no value at this point and could simply end up being released, creating an opportunity for one of Atlanta’s top-tier shortstop prospects (Dansby Swanson and Ozhaino Albies).
  • Robin Ventura is on the hot seat with the White Sox, Heyman writes (adding more detail here). A team source tells him that there’s a feeling that “patience has been shown” and a change could benefit the team. Bench coach Rick Renteria, who formerly managed the Cubs, could succeed Ventura. Not that it’s particularly surprising, but Heyman adds that former skipper Ozzie Guillen wouldn’t be a candidate to return to his old post.
  • The Rockies haven’t yet started receiving calls asking about Carlos Gonzalez, but they’re expected to listen to offers despite hovering around .500 to this point of the season. GM Jeff Bridich tells Heyman that his current focus is on winning and adds that prized righty Jeff Hoffman, who headlined the prospects acquired in last July’s Troy Tulowitzki blockbuster, is “closer than he is far away.”
  • While Jonathan Lucroy is perhaps the most-cited trade candidate in baseball, GM David Stearns tells Heyman that an extension can’t be entirely ruled out. Heyman notes that if the Brewers are able to move Ryan Braun, they could look to reallocate some of those funds to locking up Lucroy, who is more open to an extension now that the Brewers are performing better than most pundits expected. There could, of course, be some level of gamesmanship there, as it would make sense for any team official to downplay a prime trade target’s availability.
  • The Padres are “open” to trading Wil Myers in the right scenario, says Heyman, but it still seems unlikely that’ll come to fruition. San Diego has received hits on Jon Jay and Derek Norris, though, and presumably the organization is more willing to part with those players.
  • There was talk of the Tigers pursuing Chris Davis over the winter, and Heyman says that was indeed the case. The club was considering an offer in the $180MM range for the slugger, per the report. Owner Mike Ilitch also pushed for Yoenis Cespedes over Justin Upton, but the club elected to grab the younger player. That choice is certainly up for debate after their respective starts.
  • The Phillies are obvious sellers, but most of their marketable assets reside on the pitching side of the equation. But the club sees infielder Andres Blanco as a plausible piece, with Freddy Galvis also potentially on the block. Blanco isn’t quite repeating his surprising 2015 season, but is hitting at around the league average rate and could be a useful utility piece.
  • With continued uncertainty surrounding Felix Hernandez, the Mariners are likely to explore the rotation market this summer. The club has received a nice boost from James Paxton of late, but many of its starters have long-term injury questions so it isn’t surprising to hear that the club is readying for an addition in that area.
  • Heyman also floats the idea that the Nationals could dangle top position player prospect Trea Turner in trade talks this summer. He wonders whether he could be the chip that lands a top-end reliever, citing Yankees hurler Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman. From my perspective, that would be rather surprising: Turner has shown himself ready for a full crack at the big leagues and is widely considered one of the game’s twenty best prospects. Even if the Nats don’t make him the starter in 2016, he’s a critical part of the team’s middle infield depth right now and an important future piece.
  • Veteran outfielder Shane Victorino has rejected several opportunities to join teams on minor-league deals, says Heyman. Victorino is holding out for a shot to join a big league roster.
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