The Mets’ trade talks with the Chicago Cubs for the third base player Kris Bryant it resumes, according to Andy Martino of SNY.
With Bryant now playing for the Mets again, with what kind of package should New York be willing to participate?
Bryant is under contract for $ 19.5 million in 2021 and will get free agency after the season, which means his situation is no different than the situation with Francisco Lindor earlier this season before the Cleveland Indians – desperate to clean up the payroll – treated him and Carlos Carrasco to the Mets.
Like Bryant, Lindor will get a free agency after the 2021 season and will earn a high salary this season ($ 22.3 million). Like Bryant, Lindor comes off a season off. But for Lindor, her 2020 was still productive.
Bryant’s, meanwhile, was worrying.
He only hit .206 / .293 / .351 while limited to 34 games, in part due to an oblique injury.
Bryant also missed 60 games in 2018 due to a shoulder injury that affected his power delivery. He hit just 13 homers in 2018, but bounced back to beat 31 in 147 games in 2019 while hitting .282 / .382 / .521.
While Bryant’s performance in 2020 looks like a departure and his upside is huge, he should not cost more than it took to get Lindor and Carrasco.
And with Scott Boras as Bryant’s agent, the likelihood that the Mets will expand (if they are interested in it) is likely to be lower than their chances of expanding Lindor.
The fact that Bryant is likely to rent is not the Cubs’ problem. It leaves them free to ask back for anything they want. But for the Mets, they have to draw a line in the sand when it comes to what they want to share. What should that line be?
Team President Sandy Alderson said earlier this season that the team is not necessarily reluctant to part with prospects. To be precise, they were mostly opposed to trading their most valued outlook.
The Mets had no prospects from their top six while trading for Lindor, and had to have the same philosophy in conversations with Bryant.
This means that Francisco Alvarez, Matt Allan, Ronny Mauricio, Pete Crow-Armstrong, Brett Baty, en JT Ginn must be off limits.
The types of players above are rarely hired anymore, and the Mets have to stick to that.
Instead, New York must be willing to take part in one of its top ten prospects – think of a player as the third baseman Mark Vientos – and another high-ceiling prospect in their top-30 who are years away from majoring.
However, that will certainly not be enough.
While trading for Lindor and Carrasco, the Mets had prospects Isaiah Greene with Andres Gimenez and Amed Rosario – two valuable big league players with almost a decade of team control together.
To get Bryant, they may have to part with another valuable big league piece, but the overall package should not be on par with what it cost to get Lindor and Carrasco.
Per Martino, the Cubs have previously been interested in trading JD Davis, which will earn only $ 2.1 million in 2021 and has four more years of team control.
While Davis is a promising young batsman, his defense on the third base (and in the left field) is a serious concern. Bryant’s third-place defense is above average, while his offensive stern is literally that of an MVP.
Can a package of Davis and Vientos (or another prospect not in the Mets’ top six, but within their top 15) do that for Bryant? Perhaps.
If the Cubs want an extra prospect, the Mets must insist that Chicago take back Jeurys Familia and a large portion of the $ 11 million he owes this season.
Should the Mets be willing to share that kind of package with Bryant? Yes.
After Trevor Bauer preferred to move to Los Angeles, despite the Mets offering him more money, it felt like the Mets had one big move left this offseason – with a brand for Bryant among the possible moves that made the most sense has.
With talks now reviving, the Mets need to be aggressive but firm. The end result could be a left-wing interior in 2021, with not only Lindor but Bryant as well.