The Winter Meetings this past week in San Diego stimulated a whirlwind of roster activity across MLB, but for the Mets…not so much. Besides yesterday’s signing of veteran outfielder John Mayberry, nothing transpired from the discussions engaged by GM Sandy Alderson. He hinted at exploring all possibilities of roster improvement, including the shortstop position and another lefty in the bullpen, but pulled the trigger only for Mayberry. Reports, rumors, social media banter, etc. has all fueled the discussions from the outside, but how aggressive any forthcoming moves are being sought from the inside is still an unknown. Pertinent information from the deal makers is relayed with so much calculation; it’s difficult for the media and fans to sift through the words with any certainty. So what, if anything, is on the horizon in respect to roster activity?
Dillon Gee has been at the forefront of most of the reported discussions, with the Giants, Rangers, Royals, Rockies, and Twins being the inquirers. One report, via ESPN’s Marly Rivera that might give an idea of Alderson’s value assessment of Wilmer Flores, is the nixed trade proposal of shortstop Eduardo Escobar for Dillon Gee. Escobar, in 133 games for the Twins last year, slashed .275/.315/.406 with 6 HR and 37 RBIS. Defensively, in 98 games at shortstop, the 26 year old Venezuelan had five errors to go along with – 6 DRS and a 2.1 UZR. Alderson clearly didn’t see Escobar as enough of an upgrade to pull a deal for Gee, who appears to be the odd man out of the rotation. The Rangers and Twins could be taking their names out of any Gee talk after the acquisitions of Ross Detwiler and Ervin Santana respectively.
The shortstop market is a thin one, as Alderson has continuously said and reflective by Asdrubal Cabrera, Stephen Drew, and Jed Lowrie’s continued availability. The Yankees got their shortstop via a trade for Didi Gregorious to replace Derek Jeter, and the Dodgers landed Jimmy Rollins among others in their flurry of trades and signings to play shortstop. Considering many view Cabrera and Lowrie as second basemen going forward coupled with Drew’s awful 2014 season, the free agent trio may be on the market for a while, especially when you consider only the Oakland Athletics still have a clear need for a starting shortstop. The Mets, who appear comfortable with Flores, have the leverage of low demand if they want to let the market price drop but it appears unlikely.
As for the trade market, the Mets will have to patiently wait for Max Scherzer and James Shields to sign a deal before they can accurately corner the market for Gee or even Jon Niese; there’s little chance the Mets will go into Spring Training with both considering the other options in the rotation. So aside from today’s minor league signing of Scott Rice and yesterday’s Rule 5 drafting of Sean Gilmartin, the 40 man roster should be stable for the near future unless the Mets do decide to sign another veteran lefty for the bullpen.
Teams don’t win championships in the December; the Mets staying low-key at the Winter Meetings may be indicative of a team satisfied with the sum of their parts. Right?
Follow Sean Flattery on Twitter @SeanFlatts
After seeing some of the contracts handed out at the Winter Meetings, i think i’m going to jump off the Stephen Drew train. I liked him if we could snag him at around 1 year at $5 mil with incentives, but now i’m thinking he could get 2 years and between 15-25 mil and the Mets should pass at that price.
New name i’m going to start to throw around (also a guy talked about last year)- Yunel Escobar. While they don’t have a true replacement for him, they have super utility guys in Zobrist and Franklin who can probably share the time, and maybe they bring up Hak Ju Lee if he’s ever healthy. If they want a true SS, i’d do Tejada + low level prospect(Blake Taylor?), and maybe 1 better prospect if they don’t want Tejada (Fulmer?)
The Twins were willing to trade their 25 year old starting shortstop for Gee. Alderson therefore must feel that Gee has more value than that and that he will be able to get a better return. We will see.
Escobar is a better shortstop defensively than both Flores and Tejada and maybe slightly better offensively than Tejada. Escobar is a switch hitter and will cost about $1M less than Tejada. Gee will cost about $5M so as a salary dump that is a $6M swing.
Sardinis in Texas was also linked to Gee. Chris Taylor of Seatle may also be available. Both have the potential to be a better shortstops than Tejada but neither have enough major league experience to hang playoff hopes on.
The three shortstops I have mentioned above would be cheaper than Tejada and are probably better than Tejada (or at least have a higher ceiling than Tejada) so the team would be improved.
It appears that Flores is the starting shortstop but these other three could be a better fallback than Tejada should Flores struggle.
The other affordable Met shortstop option is Miller and that is probably the reason Gee wasn’t traded. They may need Gee if Niese is traded for Miller.
I’m on the fence about Gee for Escobar. I wouldn’t mind if we took the deal and could see why we wouldn’t. Hopefully, they’ll keep that offer open as it’s a nice safety net while the Mets try to continue shop Gee for a bigger fish.
Side note: I don’t get the Twins and their obsession with low-upside pitchers. Kevin Correia, Mike Pelfrey, Ricky Nolasco, Ervin Santana, Phil Hughes… I guess Gee fits into the theme here lol
totally agree name
I don’t think Drew has any leverage to swing another big contract, especially after last season. It would be weird for TB to trade Yunel Escobar after giving him an extension, i don’t really see a match there.
I think Sandy likes Miller in Seattle, if there is a trade, i think that’s the guy. The rumors of Miller being moved to the outfield stinks of power play by the GM, but that could be my devious mind at work. Bwhahaha
“I don’t think Drew has any leverage to swing another big contract, especially after last season”
That’s what i thought until I saw some of the contracts this week. Santana 4/54, Morales 2/17, Liriano 3/39, Robertson 4/46. Cuddyer 2/21 and Butler 3/30, belong on this overpaid list as well. We live in a world where teams are drooling over a lefty who has only 1 proven dominant season.
So far this offseason, the only 2 contracts that i didn’t think were overpays are Adam Laroche 2/25 and Jason Hammel 2/20. Every other contract i think the team overpaid.
Unlike last season where i continually noted the lack of teams needing a SS, there are quite a few teams who could need a SS this year and thus i think Drew will be able to get at least 15 mil.
As for Yunel, he signed the extension at the beginning of the year, before the Rays made the trade for Franklin. Coupled with a bad season, i think there’s a possibility he could be moved.
I like Miller too, but not if we have to give up Niese, who i like a lot (more than Wheeler).
I’d rather give up a little more and get Zobrist. He’s posted a -1.9 UZR/150 in over 1700 innings at SS. However, that UZR/150 has been positive all of the last three years at that position, so he’s shown improvement and would be an everyday option at short. Add onto that, he’s been an easy 5.5 WAR player over the past four years, and you have yourself an offensive and defensive upgrade at a critical position. His OBP is good enough to bat lead-off if you absolutely needed him to, and he has playoff experience and veteran leadership. He’s a free agent after 2015, but that might mean he can be hand for slightly less. Maybe Gee, Montero and a bat?
Sean I don’t think the Mets have to wait. You’re talking about front line pitchers as opposed to middle rotation. 5 million compared to 20-25 million for an ace. So the Mets will be in no hurry (maybe the Wilpons are). Interesting note on the Winter meetings was Walt Jocketty’s honest assessment in trading his pitchers to adjust (lower) their payroll and provide some flexibility for needs elsewhere. Very refreshing and it does not diminish his reputation.
I don’t think they have to wait, but once legit free agent options become scarce, Mets can lean on suitors a little more.
KC and Texas probably won’t sign one of the big ones, maybe Volquez. Seattle can stick with what they have, but Gee or Niese will be enticing. I like them both, but its a numbers game in the Mets favor.
I like Zobrist, but think TB like his price tag. Guess it can’t hurt to ask.
Drew will get 7 million per year tops IMO