It was a trade. But it was also free agency.
The Mets acquired Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco from the Indians in exchange for four players. But they bought it too.
Cleveland’s prestigious baseball division investigated what they could get for Lindor, Carrasco and the two together. Ultimately, the first task, due to the 2021 budget provided by ownership, was to escape as much as possible from the approximately $ 47 million to the couple, especially the approximately $ 33 million for 2021. And thereby gain so much young ( cheap) talent if possible.
Therefore, Cleveland decided to put Lindor and Carrasco together and accept a lesser return in talent from the Mets. The Indians’ hope was that, through so many free traders and trading opportunities in this slow-moving market, they could spend a chunk of what they had saved, and they wanted to seize opportunities to strengthen the roster. remain competitive in the meh AL Central.
However, they had to come mainly from the money.
The first huge move of the Steve Cohen and Sandy Alderson administration thus coincides with the first material transaction of Brodie Van Wagenen’s administration.
It was also a free agency that was declared a trade. The Mariners were willing to include Edwin Diaz in a deal to make Robinson Cano disappear just as surely as the Indians were willing to lower the value of Lindor to escape the full two years at $ 27 million still on Carrasco owes.
The problem: The Mets made a much bigger financial commitment in Cano than in Carrasco, while getting a smaller piece in Diaz than in Lindor and also giving up a much more desirable brand in Jarred Kelenic than in Andres Gimenez .
A few thoughts:
Kelenic must still reach the major and succeed. Mets’ biggest sin with him for the time being was to trade him less than a year after he drafted him and thus not realize the value he had built up with just one full minor league season.
The bigger baseball crime was the trading of an asset that had the skill to haunt the Mets in the essence of a desperate salary drop by the Mariners. In reviews of the Lindor trade by foreign executives (who all considered it a victory for the Mets), they all mention that no one who surrendered the Mets would burn them, even though all admiration was for Gimenez. Let’s spend some time with that one again. I am a big fan of players with talent who, although young, show both a high baseball IQ and sincerity of effort. Gimenez checks the blocks.
It should also be noted that the two prospects in the trade – Isaiah Greene and Josh Wolf – set up second rounds in Van Wagenen’s tenure and traded through Alderson. Kelenic and Dunn were the first round of Alderson’s first tenure traded by Van Wagenen. The Mets put up well for years, and if a compliment was given to Van Wagenen’s era, it was that he handled the concept well in his two tries. Nevertheless, the reviews from Greene and Wolf are that they are years away and, at best, the prospects for the lottery tickets – though, again, will be the ultimate arbiter.
Cano was just a much bigger emergency than Carrasco. When it comes to these types of players, think about how much they would receive free agency if they were available. Cano was suspended for 80 matches in 2018 for testing positive for a banned performance enhancer. He’s going to be 36 years old in 2019. If he was a free agent after the 2018 season, then he would have received, what? A two-year contract for a maximum of $ 20 million, probably not even. Maybe one year.
Cano has more than $ 120 million left in five years, and even while the Mariners ate $ 20 million and took Jay Bruce and Anthony Swarzak, the Mets still owed $ 63.5 million for five years. To gain access to Diaz, it was too much to take up that money and give up Kelenic. I can not imagine another team going close to what the Mets did for Cano, even to acquire Diaz.
Carrasco has two years left to $ 27 million, assuming its 2023 option is not met. He is a survivor of leukemia entering his age of 34, but he will start a 2.91 ERA in 12 years. Could he match Mike Minor’s $ 18 million from two years in this limited market? Carrasco has an excellent reputation as a person and teammate, and when he is aggressive with his fast ball, his secondary things, namely his change and move right, still make him a strong starter. It’s much closer to two years with $ 27 million in value than Cano was five years at $ 63.5 million. Much closer.
The Mets had a .432 winning percentage in 2017 before Van Wagenen took over and .433 last year before Cohen bought the club. Both administrations entered and believed that the previous club had underperformed their talent and that changes would make them immediate winners.
Van Wagenen thus bypassed the best catchers on the market (JT Realmuto in a trade and Yasmani Grandal in free agency), who were concerned that eliminating Grandal’s free agency would cost opportunities elsewhere and instead signed Wilson Ramos. He also signed an enlightener, Jeurys Familia. His first trailer was the move of free agency that was presented as a trade for Diaz / Cano.
So far, Cohen / Alderson Mets have bypassed the best catcher in the market (Realmuto in free agencies), who were worried that waiting for Realmuto’s free agency opportunities would cost elsewhere and instead signed James McCann. They also signed a reliever, Trevor May. Then they made the free agency move as a trademark for Lindor / Carrasco.
Van Wagenen’s fault was that a team should never offer big money or big assets (the Mets used both) for a reliever, unless it is positive that it is a contender. Because having a closer with too few wins to close is like having a beautiful roof on an outside room.
A shortstop like Lindor helps daily, though any Mets fan will sign him up to produce a .316 / .352 / .544 dash next year – which by the way was Cano’s last season. Of course, Cano was then injured again because he was a PED cheat. Lindor’s salary will be around $ 20 million, or what the Mets will save with Cano forfeiting its 2021 salary. However, Cano is still owed $ 40 million for 2022-23 for two years after its suspension.
So this is the biggest difference between those Mets and these Mets. Those Mets, among the Wilpons, left one last sting with competitive interest with the owners probably aware that they were going to sell. Cohen is now on the long road with the deepest pockets in the sport. He can handle Cano’s salary and probably an extension for Lindor. Cohen has the money to navigate the failed free agency that pretends to be a trader of his predecessor while trying it himself.