Where On The “Big Acquisition” Spectrum Will Curtis Granderson Fall?

Recently, Mets’ GM Sandy Alderson made yet another proclamation that the Mets have financial room to add payroll during this 2014 season. While it is hoped – fervently — that Alderson and his superiors will stop talking about acquiring talent and actually…y’know…acquire talent, this does come as heartening news. You’ll no doubt recall that a similar statement was made before the Winter Meetings and the major acquisition on which Alderson could hang his hat was Curtis Granderson. On the off-chance you haven’t heard, Granderson is off to a miserable start in 2014. As a result, an old trope has been revived among the fan base and in the MSM that “as soon as the Mets pick up a big bat or a big name position player, he starts to [stink].” Your intrepid columnist decided to take a stroll through Mets’ history and see if this is true and try to see where Granderson is headed.

First off, of course, almost the entire rosters of the 1962 and 1963 teams were comprised of familiar players culled from other MLB rosters, so these years were discounted: you won’t see the Richie Ashburns, Frank Thomases or Duke Sniders on this list. 1964 – with the arrival of All-Star Ron Hunt – saw the first influx of homegrown Met talent. Without further ado, here is the list:

George Altman (1964) BAD – an established slugger brought in by the Mets for his age 31 season, Altman was never able to match his production as a 1961 & ’62 Cub All-Star. After his single year as a Met, he returned to Chicago and rode their bench until 1967.

Ken Boyer (1966) GOOD – Boyer was a year removed from his 1964 MVP year for the Cardinals and it looked like he’d put an end to the Mets’ already comical third base parade. He had a decent season in ’66, but not anything approaching the form he showed in the Midwest. He was dispatched to the White Sox n July of ’67, in exchange for eventual World Series hero J.C. Martin.

Tommy Davis (1967) GOOD – Davis was a fine hitter for the Dodgers, notching back-to-back batting titles for the Dodgers in 1962 & ’63. A shattered ankle in ’65 made him available to the Mets. In ’67, he was able to make more than 330 plate appearances for the first time post-injury. He responded with a fine season in which he posted a 125 OPS+. His greatest value however, came the following winter when he was traded to the White Sox for…

Tommie Agee (1968) GOOD – Here’s where we see the seeds of the trope. Agee had a horrible first year in New York, starting with the very first day of spring training, when he took a Bob Gibson fastball off the helmet. The following year, however, he became the toast of the town after leading – yes, really leading – the Mets to an unlikely pennant and World Series victory.

Donn Clendenon (1969) GOOD – Clendenon was one of the most feared NL sluggers of the 1960s. Arriving in New York after refusing a trade from Montreal to Houston, Clendenon was the final piece to the championship puzzle.

Joe Foy (1970) BAD – Here is where we Mets fans first see the failure of a “big” acquisition in terms of what was given away – another piece of the narrative. Foy was seen as yet another “solution” to the team’s chronic third base issue, but had an execrable year after being acquired for future perennial All-Star Amos Otis.

Jim Fregosi (1972) BAD – The Mets’ brain trust came up with a unique attempt at finally fixing third base: bring in an All-Star shortstop and let him play the “easier” position. Needless to say, it didn’t work and it took away Nolan Ryan.

Rusty Staub (1972) GOOD – The Mets finally landed the slugger manager Gil Hodges had begged for. Unfortunately, Hodges passed away just before Staub arrived. Staub was hit in the hand by a pitch in June and was never right for the rest of the year. Like Agee, however, Staub bounced back the following year and was the lone power threat on the 1973 pennant winners.

Dave Kingman (1975) GOOD – A real under-the-radar acquisition, Kingman ended up setting club records for home runs in 1975 and ’76. After an acrimonious departure in 1977, Kingman returned to notch the first ever home run title in Mets history in 1982.

Joe Torre (1975) BAD – Yet another failed solution to the third base problem, now becoming legendary. Torre was clearly past his prime by the time he landed in Queens. He did end up becoming an OK manager, though.

Richie Hebner (1979) BAD – You get three guesses what position Hebner played…and the first two don’t count. Hebner’s tenure in New York was an unmitigated disaster and he quickly became one of the most vilified performers in Mets’ history.

Claudell Washington (1980) GOOD – Washington came to the Mets in mid-season, 1980. He was new GM Frank Cashen’s first major splash and he rewarded the team with a fine power show for the rest of the year. He would have made a fine addition to the 1981 team, had the Atlanta Braves not showered him with ultimately undeserved gold.

Ellis Valentine (1981) BAD – Valentine arrived pre-strike & greatly excited the fan base. This was a guy with a canon arm and an erstwhile member of the vaunted Montreal outfield of 1977 – ’81. He never could duplicate his production north of the border and it was a sweet relief when Cashen let him walk away prior to the 1983 season.

George Foster (1982) BAD – Foster goes into the “bad” category because of the way his tenure began production-wise and because of the way it ended in the clubhouse and in the media in 1986. In between, however, he was a valuable piece for the contending Mets of 1984 and ’85.

Keith Hernandez (1983) GOOD – Hernandez was one of a string of acquisitions by Cashen which were nothing short of brilliant. Just look at his stats and awards and no further explanation is necessary.

Gary Carter (1985) GOOD – Again, Carter’s Met tenure is self-explanatory. One of the legendary players in Mets’ history and the final piece that made 1986 1986.

Kevin McReynolds (1987) GOOD – While his seemingly passionless demeanor rubbed many fans the wrong way, McReynolds was extremely productive and he was a strong MVP candidate in 1988.

Juan Samuel (1989) BAD – Another in the Foy/Fregosi category. Samuel was acquired for Lenny Dykstra and Roger McDowell and never fit in during his thankfully brief New York tenure. the Mets’ downward spiral into the ‘90s had begun.

Vince Coleman (1991) BAD – Darryl Strawberry had walked away after the 1990 season. Cashen let him. Somehow, it was decided that hitless speedster Coleman would somehow replace Strawberry’s production. It didn’t take; Coleman wasn’t the firecracker he had been and he quickly became persona non grata in New York.

Bobby Bonilla (1992) BAD – Bonilla’s problems at Shea Stadium have been well-documented, from earplugs on the field, to pugilistic threats off it. A signing best left forgotten, if only we are ever allowed to forget.

Eddie Murray (1992) GOOD – Murray had two very good years for teams that were going absolutely nowhere, posting OPS+ numbers of 115 & 112 respectively.

Brett Butler (1995) GOOD – The man who should have been signed instead of Coleman in ’91 finally arrived in ’95 and had himself a fun, fine season before being dealt back to the Dodgers for the stretch run.

Carlos Baerga (1996) BAD – Baerga is one of the players pointed to to support the narrative. He was an All-Star second baseman with Cleveland, but could not replicate that success here. He also cost the Mets possible Hall of Famer Jeff Kent.

John Olerud (1997) GOOD – The Mets’ second-best acquisition of the late ‘90s, Olerud was the most productive player the Mets had since Strawberry had left. This began another run of fine acquisitions by the Mets’ management team, now fronted by Steve Phillips.

Mike Piazza (1998) GOOD – The fact that this man is not yet in the Hall of Fame is one of the great crimes of this late age of baseball.

Robin Ventura (1999) GOOD – Ventura had great production and was a key cog in the fun and exciting Met teams of 1999 and 2000. Grand slam single, anyone?

Rickey Henderson (1999) GOOD – Anytime you bring in a future Hall of Famer and he helps you to a sixth game in the NLCS one year and a pennant the next, that’s gotta be a good thing, right?

Todd Zeile (2000) GOOD – After letting Olerud go as a free agent after 1999, Zeile was brought in and – for one year, at least – nearly duplicated Olerud’s offense.

Roberto Alomar (2002) BAD —

Jeromy Burnitz (2002) BAD —

Mo Vaughn (2002) BAD —

These three have to come in as an entry. Here is where Steve Phillips lost his magic and all three of these players cast the narrative in cement. Each was counted on to lead the Mets back to the playoffs, each – especially Alomar, an eventual Hall of Famer – was a bitter disappointment. It took another three seasons before the team could recover from these simultaneous disasters.

Cliff Floyd (2003) GOOD – Floyd played his heart out during his Met tenure, becoming the first piece of the Division winning 2006 team.

Carlos Beltran (2005) GOOD – Simply put, Carlos Beltran is the best free agent signing the Mets have ever made. Despite what some misguided fans may think, Beltran gave his all for this team and was rewarded for his trouble with one playoff appearance and a book full of indignities suffered at the hands of impatient fans and inept ownership.

Carlos Delgado (2006) GOOD — Delgado was the slugging first baseman the up-and-coming Mets were sorely lacking before the Division winning ’06 season. He turned out to be the team’s main pure-power source up until injuries cut him short in 2009.

Shawn Green (2006) BAD – With the Mets desperate to replace the production of Xavier Nady after an emergency trade, Green turned out to be the wrong choice.

Gary Sheffield (2009) BAD – Sheffield was a would-be Met his entire career. There was always a rumor floating that he would be bringing his potent home run bat to Queens. By the time he finally got here, he only had enough in the tank to launch his 500th home run and not much else.

Jeff Francoeur (2009) BAD – Once touted by Sports Illustrated as “The Natural,” Francoeur’s shortcomings had been badly exposed by the time he got here. After parts of two nondescript seasons, he was dispatched to Texas and promptly helped them to a pennant.

Jason Bay (2010) BAD – The poster-boy for bad Mets acquisitions and the example Granderson is ultimately trying to avoid.

(There are a couple of “special” cases as well, Willie Mays and Moises Alou. Willie Mays was brought here to be WILLIE MAYS and any production he gave was a bonus. Alou’s production was phenomenal — when he was able to play. He could absolutely rake, even at age 40, but he could not stay on the field. So neither of these can easily fit into a “GOOD” or “BAD” slot.)

Surprisingly, the count is 20 GOOD pickups, 18 BAD. Of course it remains to be seen where Curtis Granderson will slot in, but if the back of his baseball card is to be believed, he will be somewhere in between: better than Bay or Alomar, but not as good as Olerud or Piazza. Met fans can only hope the trend is upward.

It will go a long way to determining what kind of season these Mets have.

Follow me on Twitter @CharlieHangley