Mets should cautiously consider a Bumgarner trade

If everything goes to plan, it looks like the New York Mets will finally have the lethal 1-2 punch of Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer taking the mound at Citi Field. They will come back to a team that has played well despite receiving less than stellar pitching from the rest of the rotation. They will come back to a rotation that has seen solid performances from Taijuan Walker and Carlos Carrasco, but rough stretches from Chris Bassett and others who have filled in to plug the hole left by deGrom and Scherzer. The rotation that they are coming back to will also be without Tylor Megill, who will hit the pine for at least four weeks to rest his strained shoulder. With all of those factors baked in, the Mets will not only be celebrating the return of deGrom and Scherzer, but also will more likely than not be forced to deal for an arm at the trade deadline.

One arm that is likely to be available is Madison Bumgarner. The Arizona Diamondbacks have suffered from a rash of injuries themselves, and are starting to slip under the surface of an NL West that is being paced by the San Diego Padres, Los Angeles Dodgers, and San Francisco Giants. Being injured and losing ground in the division and wild card to three teams with playoff potential, the Diamondbacks are more likely than not to be sellers at the trade deadline this year. That brings us back to Bumgarner, who is having an interesting year.

Bumgarner is an interesting person, with or without baseball involved. It is not every day that you see a “Alter Ego” section for a player on their Baseball Reference page, but Bumgarner is not your everyday person. (His alter ego is for his rodeo career, in case you were wondering.) Having that kind of personality would fit in well on this team, so he marks that check box. In between the lines and in the dugout is where Bumgarner would be helpful to this team. His ERA this season has been a stout 3.50. His strikeout numbers won’t dazzle you, but his BABIP of .258 this season is more indicative of how he has effectively pitched to contact.

As important as it would be to have a quality pitcher like Bumgarner during the regular season, a trade for him also means you are trading for his historic postseason prowess as well. Bumgarner built his career off of his legendary performances with the Giants, most notably in 2014 when he captured the World Series MVP for his one run allowed over 21 innings. The Mets are painfully aware of what he is capable of doing come the playoffs, as he pitched a complete game to silence them in the 2016 Wild Card game. Long story short, you would not want to be the team slated to face off against the trio of deGrom, Scherzer, and Bumgarner in a 5 game series.

All things considered, the Mets would still need to tread carefully when dealing for Bumgarner. While his presence would give the Mets depth and exceptional playoff experience, his price tag certainly makes you balk for a second. Bumgarner is due $23 million this season and next, plus an additional $14 million in 2024. While Mets owner Steve Cohen has recently mentioned that he is not afraid to go past the luxury tax, it is still a lot of money to be owed to a player who has seen his regular season performance depreciate over the past few seasons. Although Bumgarner is 32 years old, he carries with him an arm that has been heavily taxed since he was brought up to the MLB in 2009 as a 19 year-old. If the Mets were to think about a deal from Bumgarner, they would need to convince the Diamondbacks to take on some of that salary that he is owed over the next few years. The Mets would also need to be cautious to not give up any significant prospects from there system, which has slowly but steadily finally started to get some depth to it.

If the Mets continue to play as strong as they have, even with the injuries they have sustained so far, they could be looking at playoff baseball. In that case, they are going to want a strong starting pitcher to add some depth to what they currently have. Despite some of the concerns just mentioned, Bumgarner could be an interesting fit on this roster. He is a player that is cut from a winning cloth, and his postseason numbers speak for themselves. The one thing that the team can’t afford to do however is overpay or over-mortgage their future to have him on the roster. They have to worry about resigning deGrom and Brandon Nimmo this offseason, as well as think about extensions for Pete Alonso and Jeff McNeil in the not so distant future. Should Bumgarner join the rotation come the tradeline however, Mets fans will be in for one interesting rodeo.

Bumgarner has a 3.50 ERA in 2022
His BABIP is .258
He has a postseason career ERA of 2.11