Ruben TejadaAside from ingratiating himself with Mets fans with a broken leg caused by Chase Utley‘s violent playoff clipping slide, Ruben Tejada has a real value to this team that should cement his roster spot, at least in the short term.

With the starting infield set with Lucas Duda, Neil Walker, Asdrubal Cabrera and David Wright, Tejada seems to be relegated to a backup role, along with Wilmer Flores. Isn’t one backup infielder enough? Isn’t the $3 million salary Tejada earned in arbitration a bit much for a role player? Will he see enough playing time to justify his salary and roster spot?

These are valid concerns that have many wondering why we didn’t designate the long tenured shortstop for assignment. Many Mets fans and writers have been speculating that we should trade him. The Cardinals suddenly have a need with Johnny Peralta hitting the disabled list for what might be until May or June. This writer asks, what’s the hurry?

Cabrera left yesterday’s game with a sore knee – likely nothing serious, but it still further stresses the importance of depth. Wright is a big question mark. Aside from needing regular rest for his back condition, there’s always the concern that he could have an extended absence due to complications. If that’s ever the case, Flores becomes our third baseman and Tejada becomes a primary backup at three positions. A similar situation would arise should Cabrera or Walker get injured.

Having two expeienced backup infielders is a luxury for sure, but at least until Wright proves he’s healthy, we should be in no rush to give up that depth. What’s to be gained? Tejada would not fetch a top prospect in return. And is it worth adding a vulnerability to a contending team to save a few bucks and add a marginal minor leaguer? Who would take Tejada’s roster spot? Eric Campbell or Matt Reynolds? The former couldn’t hit a beach ball with a tennis racket and the latter is an inexperienced player with little upside who struggled in the minors last year on both sides of the ball.

If by June or July, Wright looks good and our other infielders are healthy, then we can trade Tejada or perhaps even Walker if Hererra is ready for a promotion. For right now it would be impetuous to give up what could be important insurance for little return.

24 comments on “Ruben Tejada is a keeper

  • James Preller

    Okay, I want to try to say something here about roster construction in general. But first, given your main point, yes, sure, Ruben Tejada has real value if players go down to injury. If he’s on the field, he’ll be valuable. The $3 million is a bit much, but, oh well. Right? We might need him after all. A good insurance policy.

    We hear the same arguments about De Aza. He might very well come in handy. If Curtis goes down for 8 weeks, we’ll be glad we have him. Another solid insurance policy, albeit extraordinarily expensive.

    However, I don’t think those answers go far enough at addressing the question: Is this the best use of your current, day-to-day roster? There are 13 slots for position players. When you give one to Tejada or De Aza, that prevents the team from using it another way.

    De Aza, to me, is easy. He’s useless. The Mets have a clear need to rest Conforto & Granderson against some LHP — that’s when they need to sit. Lagares can fill that role, but not De Aza, who can’t hit LHP. So when does De Aza play? Are we really going to rest Conforto against a RHP? That would be incredibly dumb. Same with Granderson. Eric Campbell as a 25th guy might actually be more useful in spot starts in the corners.

    Again: Keep in mind that a reserve of cash would absolutely come in hand come late July. The $5.7 spent on De Aza is money that could be spent more effectively elsewhere. So it’s not that De Aza would hurt the team. He’s a good ballplayer, just a lousy fit. But how helpful is he really going to be, one a game to game basis?

    Same with Tejada.

    The Mets did not fill the Cuddyer role. If they throw Flores over at 1B, it’s not going to be pretty over there. How good will he be at digging balls out of the dirt?

    The Mets also do not have a complement at 3B for David Wright. We all know that he struggles, brutally, against any hard-throwing RHP with a slider. It’s a matchup nightmare for DW. Because of his lost bat speed, he has to guess sooner and the slider exposes that completely. So ideally, you’d pair him with a LH bat.

    The Mets don’t have that guy either. Instead they will be using Flores in those spots.

    Meanwhile, I look at a guy like Roger Bernadina and think, yes, this is exactly the kind of player the team needs at AAA or 5th OF. He’s cheap and he could play for a few weeks without killing you. I look at Rivera and think the same thing. Then there’s Reynolds and Cecchini, in a pinch.

    Do the Mets really need to spend $8.7 million on those two “valuable” insurance policies. What about a guy on the bench who can hit a HR?

    Anyway, sorry for the length. My point is that looking at a Tejada in isolation — sure, he’s good to have around if somebody gets hurt — misses some of the factors that could help a team win games in the here and now.

    • David Groveman

      If we can get return on De Aza, sure! I don’t have enough faith in our outfield being injury free to part ways with him.

    • DED

      I’ve just been edited by life, having had a longer reply zapped out of existence.

      Taking that as a sign, I’ll just say: the answer to your concern over David Wright is T J Rivera. He hits, and he hits lefty’s and right handers almost exactly the same.

    • Brian Joura

      I spent half the offseason complaining about the moves the Mets made because the money they spent didn’t make sense. But then they went out and signed Cespedes and now they’re going to have a payroll in the vicinity of $140 million. I don’t view the salaries of either De Aza or Tejada prohibitive when we’re not at $105 million or so. Especially given how little the team is paying their starting rotation. It’s hard to do a position by position comparison to other teams because they are spending so much on pitching that the Mets in 2016 don’t have to. But even with that, we see the Nationals are paying $3 million for Stephen Drew to be a backup and the Giants are paying Gregor Blanco $3.9 million to be a backup OF. So the Mets’ expenditures aren’t completely out of whack, especially when you factor in that they’ll be essentially paying minimum wage for Conforto.

      Alderson has always claimed the ability to add payroll at the deadline and last year he did just that. My recollection is that he’s said the same thing about the upcoming season. We shall see.

      To me the fit question is much more important now than the financial one. Tejada is not a great defensive SS but throughout his career he’s been a much better fielder than Cabrera. Last year in a small sample he was not good. Hopefully their internal reviews indicate that as a single-season fluke. If that’s the case, I see a competent defensive SS as a good fit for this roster.

      De Aza checked the box as a CF candidate who would take a one-year deal. Obviously they wouldn’t have signed him if they knew Cespedes was returning. In a way they’re left holding the bag. He’ll be the top LH pinch hitter on the bench and get a couple of starts per month because maybe TC will stop asking a guy in his mid 30s to play 155+ games a year. Is it ideal? No. Is it disastrous? No. A trade makes sense but if the worst thing in 2016 is carrying De Aza as a backup OF, we’ll be in very good shape.

      To me, the worst fit is Flores. His glove is not going to be an asset at any position and the possibility exists that he’ll be a serious negative at either of the infield corners. His offensive profile is only a plus if he’s hitting the ball out of the park. He showed the ability to do that last year, in certain spots in the zone against crappy pitchers. Maybe he would have taken a step forward this year. But the signing of Cabrera makes Flores completely superfluous.

      I think they should look to move Flores for an upper level 3B prospect. But I don’t know who that would be or if any club would even do that.

    • Chris F

      really thoughtful James. We often imagine the “onesy” approach like the real game is fantasy baseball. Its not.

      My question is this: with the unreal glut of middle infielders and a general hole at the corners, particularly 3B, I’d be looking to trade Flores or Tejada for some depth and then add David Freese. He would come reasonably affordable, capable of giving you 400 ABs, hits righties well, and gets on base. He will make the regular plays at 3B and unlikely to kill the team with poor defense, even if it not spectacular. Right now 3B is a gaping hole…and its far deeper than what most imagine. None of our glut of SS and 2B are suitable for a serious stint at 3B.

      • James Preller

        I like both these comments, from Brian and Chris. There really is a lot on Flores’ shoulders right now — backup everything. He might be part of the problem, if we agree that the problem is an imperfectly balanced roster.

        Brian, I think the Mets do plan to rest Curtis a bit more this year. But you’d do it against LHP, so it would be insane to give those starts to De Aza. They are perfect for Lagares (which is why they are having Conforto get some looks in RF). It’s just hard to see when I’d start De Aza.

        Look: This is minor stuff, small beans. But I find it interesting and, in the end, meaningful. Besides, with this team, most of the big stuff is already settled.

  • David Groveman

    Players I’d prefer on the roster over Ruben Tejada:

    Eric Campbell – Has the best positional flexibility on the team and is under-rated as a bench player thanks to his stretches as a starter.

    Matt Reynolds – Has a limited ceiling by is a better hitter and can play everywhere in the infield.

    T.J. Rivera – Similar to Reynolds albeit less proven.

    Ty Kelly – Has looked pretty solid with a bat as a bench option

    Travis Taijeron – Wanna have a bat off the bench that has the most impact potential then Taijeron is your man.

    Assuming the Mets have no significant injuries this Spring they should have:

    Kevin Plawecki
    Wilmer Flores
    Alejandro De Aza
    Juan Lagares

    taking up four of the five bench roles. Matt Reynolds and T.J. Rivera are easily better options in terms of coverage of positions and Taijeron is the highest ceiling offensive option for the bench slot. The $3 Million paid to Tejada is $3 Million too much.

  • TexasGusCC

    – Tejada has been a starter, or mostly starter for five years. Does he have the mindset to be a backup?
    – Much may depend on Cabrera’s knee injury, and while we can’t see Tejada being much better than Reynolds, the front office had that decision to make in December and chose Tejada. That must mean something.
    – They granted Tejada’s request for one extra day service time to get to free agency; they could have said no. Someone sure is taking care of Collins’ little buddy 😉

  • Matty Mets

    Now awaiting results of Cabrera’s MRI. The problem with questioning the need for spare parts is that you presuppose an injury free team, which never happens. I’m not a de Aza fan, but it’s very rare that all 3 starting outfielders for any team avoid the DL for the entire season. Aside from days off, there’s also pinch hitting and running, defensive replacements and interleague DH games. The only way there aren’t enough at bats to go around, and de Aza and/or Tejada becomes useless is if this team stays remarkably healthy. I’ve also seen – not so much on Mets360, but on other blogs – fans and bloggers calling for the Mets to trade Plawecki. Given d’Arnaud’s injury history, this would be a huge mistake.

    My issue with trading any of these guys is that a) their not worth a lot in trade b) what’s the hurry and c) outside of Herrera, there’s not really a quality major league ready player with any upside in Vegas. Smith and Nimmo are probably a year away. Cechini is at least that, Rosario is probably 2 away. Reynolds hasn’t shown he’s ready for the majors and Campbell and Monell have proven they don’t belong. A contending team should not have quadruple A players on the roster. The reason why we traded for Walker rather than hand second base to Hererra is because contending teams look to limit the number of question marks.

    • James Preller

      Matty, in fairness, I never questioned the need for spare parts and certainly never assumed an injury-free team.

      I am glad they have Tejada, for now; I opined long ago, right here, that he was in ST as an insurance policy.

      You can’t eliminate “cost” from the equation when you are considering “value.” And you can’t eliminate it when considering trades. The “salary dump” is a longstanding device. Could you then use that money in a different way? That’s the question I’m asking.

      I sure wish I thought Plawecki could play. Seems like a really nice guy.

  • Matty Mets

    Cabrera out 2 weeks with a tendon strain. I rest my case.

    Just kidding.

    I tend to err on the side of caution when it comes to depth. When Minaya was GM we got burnt several times by not carrying a 6th starter. Last year it seemed like we had 9 starters, then Wheeler got hurt, Montero struggled and Gee stunk. That still left us with 6 and afforded us the luxury to not rush Matz.

  • BK

    Trading Tejada was always a shortsighted move. Now with Cabrera injured, we need him. As you said, let’s revisit this midseason.

  • Mike Koehler

    If Cabrera (and Reynolds) didn’t get hurt, I think there could be an argument that the St. Louis Cardinals or another desperate team would overpay for Tejada. Blue chip return, no. B-level prospect or average bullpen arm, maybe.

  • Eraff

    DeAza and Tejada are very much separate issues. DeAza is purely an accident of Timing. Tejada is a legitimate backup Middle infielder—and I want to not care about his salary.

    Both have value…and you hold them until you identify a need…I do agree that a RHB, Back up corner outfielder would be ideal.

    I’m surprised at the fear of Flores at the Corners….especially 1st Base (stock pile this comment—you’ll be using it against me!!!!).

  • Eraff

    BTW— all of you Tejada basher/ “Terry’s Pet” guys—please…. was Honus Wagner on the Bench while Tejada was playing???

  • Matty Mets

    I have to add, how nice is it that this is what we’re debating – if our bench players are too expensive, will get enough playing time, or are the exact right fit. In past years, we had fourth outfielders and platoon partners who didn’t belong in the major leagues.

  • Metsense

    In a perfect world, the Mets would have an expierienced left handed batting third baseman and expierienced right handed hitting first baseman/outfielder on the bench. DeAza, Tejada and Flores are the candidates of choice to trade in order to fill these needs. If there is no opportunity to fill these needs then the Mets should sit tight for the time being and keep these players. That does not classify Tejada as a keeper as he should be traded if one of the needs present itself.

  • Matty Mets

    Since I wrote this post, Wright is still yet to suit up and play and Cabrera is now unlikely to be ready for opeing day. Yet I’ve read in several places that the Mets are looking to trade Tejada. Foolish if they do. I also questioned why they let Recker go and now it’s been reported that we’re looking for a veteran backup so Plawecki can start the season in Vegas.

  • MattyMets

    http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/14976693

    The front office may regret this.

    • jb hill

      just read this myself a few minutes ago. i’m with you. i think the mets may well rue this decision. what i cant figure out is why they did this. i refuse to believe it was to save what amounts to peanuts in mlb salary.

  • Metsense

    It is apparent that nobody wanted to pick up Tejada’s salary in a trade. Tejada was not going to get any playing time as the backup to Cabrera and Flores. Flores and Tejada in their careers have both been below average offensive players. Ater 5 years it is obvious what Tejada’s ceiling is while there is still hope Flores may improve offensively. Tejada is paid $3 m so the Mets save $2 m (Tejada 500K and his replacement 500K) which they can invest elsewhere.. Tejada is a good experienced back up shortstop but he no longer fits in the roster makeup of the team.

  • TexasGusCC

    Collins is going to get wasted tonight.

    Since we all agree that Tejada wasn’t making “that” much money, it’s probable that he was cut for other reasons. It must be a question of “ok, Tejada or Campbell?” Tejada will be a free agent next year anyway, especially after they granted him an extra day service time to make him qualify. And, I actually thought Campbell did have a lot of bad luck last year. He hit some balls on the screws but landed in outfielders’ gloves. Tejada has little range, no bat, no speed, no power. While he can make the play right at him, why does he need to be clogging up a roster spot? He won’t get better on the bench, anyway. Given a choice between the two, why lose a serviceable bench player to keep a player that has no upside and sucks anyway?

  • MattyMets

    Contending teams don’t pinch pennies and keep AAAA players on the roster.

  • Mark S

    The Daily News today said the Mets released Ruben because his $3 million contract was too high. But they just signed him to that contract during the off season! Oh well, sorry to see him go.

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