Yes, I know you haven’t heard from me in a while, but let’s hope this is the start of a change in that pattern. Since we’ve last conversed, the Mets hired Brodie Van Wagenen, hired Chili Davis, added some high-profile names to the front office, said goodbye to J.P. Ricciardi and, most notably, traded Jay Bruce, Anthony Swarzak, Jarred Kelenic, Justin Dunn and Gerson Bautista for Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz.
First, on the trade: I hated to see Kelenic go, but you have to give to get. Cano, if he is the player he was after returning from suspension last year, can be a solid middle-of-the-order bat, which was sorely needed. As for Diaz, he led the leagues in saves and strikes out the world, so this should’ve been called the Diaz deal…not the Cano deal.
As for moving forward, lots of rumors have swirled, as we’re now in the thick of the Winter Meetings in Las Vegas. According to various reports, the Mets have already sat down with Wilson Ramos and are planning to discuss Yasmani Grandal and others, which includes lower-level trade possibilities in Francisco Cervelli and Russell Martin.
But the big rumor involves J.T. Realmuto. The latest one floated around late last night involved a three-way deal between the Mets, Marlins and, of all teams, Yankees. The Mets would get Realmuto, the Marlins would get prospects and the Yankees would get Noah Syndergaard. There needs to be more to the haul for the Mets for me to take that seriously, and no I am not talking about Sonny Gray.
While Gray may be interesting, considering we have Dave Eiland and Mickey Callaway, both of whom have a track record for success with pitchers, the name I’d need to see is Miguel Andujar. With Todd Frazier being on a contract year, the Mets would have their third-baseman of the future, as well as the best catcher in the game. Then they should sign a starter, and hope Wheeler and Matz continue to evolve.
Again, a lot of these rumors are smoke and mirrors. Let’s wait and see what Brodie does. There’s no doubt, though, that this is going to be one exciting week to follow.
