Bartolo Colon may not be the most athletic, diverse, or even handsomest of pitchers, but he is the best in baseball right now…which means his value is through the roof. Colon has won each of his first four starts, which has only been done by two other pitchers this season (Matt Harvey (NYM) and Alfredo Simon (DET)). In 26 innings thus far in 2015, Colon has a 2.77 ERA with a 22:1 K:BB ratio and a 0.885 WHIP. Needless to say, Colon’s value is the highest it has been in a while, which leaves the Mets with two options: trade him for youth or keep him as a dominant veteran presence in the clubhouse. Therefore, Mets’ General Manager Sandy Alderson is stuck between a rock and a hard place with these two options with no one choice sounding better than the other at first thought.
Trade Colon: From the second the Mets signed Colon prior to the 2014 season, Mets fans have been waiting to get the notification of their iPhones/Androids telling them that Colon had been traded to another team for a bundle of young players. However, this has yet to happen…but it may not be too late. Colon is his 40’s and in his contract season, which is the perfect combination for a player the Mets would want to trade. Trading Colon would most likely mean sending him to an American League squad, despite his recent RBI magic, and to a team who sees themselves as a contender as the season goes on. Some teams that come to mind are the Royals, Mariners, Tigers, and Red Sox. On that list, the Red Sox may make the most sense due to the fact that they are in need of an ace pitcher…which is exactly what Colon has been for the Mets the past two seasons. In return, the Red Sox have an established farm system with some young arms the Mets can use in their bullpen and/or starting rotation. Therefore, trading Colon may not be as hard as it may seem, with the only possible issue being his contract situation at the age of 42 (at season’s end).
Keep Colon: The other option the Mets have is to keep Colon, which makes sense when looking at all the factors of the organization. Not only is Colon an established veteran, but he also plays a significant role in keeping the clubhouse loose. The soft-spoken pitcher always manages to bring a smile to his teammates’ faces while he is at the plate or fielding his position. So far this season, Colon is arguably the best pitcher in the game, and putting him alongside Harvey, Jacob deGrom, and possibly Noah Syndergaard would create the perfect storm of pitching for the Mets late in the season to win the National League Easter Division if not a Wild Card spot. Of course, not trading Colon will mean that the Mets will not be getting a bundle of young players…but that is almost unnecessary at the moment. As for the injury risk, Colon is a pitcher who is not all too injury prone, mostly because throws mostly an upper 80mph fastball and then adds in a couple of changeups.
A General Manager’s job is never easy, and Colon is just making Alderson’s job that much more difficult. As one of the most valuable players the Mets have at the moment, Colon causes a split between Mets fans, some wanting to trade him and some wanting to keep him. In the end, however, Alderson cannot go wrong in the decision, because the Mets will be getting all they want/need from Colon whichever way Alderson decides to go.
See Brian, i told you people overreact to early season sample sizes all the time. Of course, this year it happened to be Colon going well in April instead of Gee, but if it happened to Gee you’d be hearing about his “elevated” trade stock as well.
To be fair, early season sample sizes are what we have right now. You trade high on players when you can, and good half seasons may get you a good return at the deadline. Although it doesn’t look like there are many GMs that “fall” for that these days.
I don’t agree with the thesis here at all. If Colon pitches great, then it’s . . . great. No way a “problem” for Sandy Alderson. You keep him, keep winning games, and roll toward the playoffs.
“Getting bundle of young players” Not sure about that but if Sandy can manage that, maybe he too should extended.
I think Colon has become too important in the rotation to trade unless Syndergaard or Matz start bringing the door down instead of knocking.
But if we trade him, I am going to miss seeing him swinging while his helmet puts out.
Given that its looking more likely we could be in a pennant race, I would value Colon’s presence and leadership pretty high.
So I would have to be blown away with a trade offer to deal him right now.
Dan, great points but maybe a little bit early to make these decisions. My opinion is that if the Mets trade for youngsters, get outfielders or lefty starters. Those are the deficiencies in the system. Nimmo and Conforto are good prospects but no one is a sure thing. And as we saw tonight with Nimmo, injuries could happen.
Mr. Gomes, as both Matz and Syndergaard have a 2 something ERA in a rediculous hitter’s park like Las Vegas, they are pounding on the door. Hopefully, they knock it down soon.
Colon had a pretty rough outing last night, but I suppose he was “due.” Let’s just hope that doesn’t start to become a trend.
Colon’s value is greater for the Mets than it would be as a trade piece. Colon is a very good pitcher, but no team is going to surrender a blue chip prospect for him, never mind a ‘bundle’. The other GMs in the league aren’t dummies