Carlos Beltran and the Peppermint Patty plan

Surely I cannot be the only one checking MetsBlog five times a day to see if Carlos Beltran has been traded yet. I don’t want him to be dealt but it’s hard to imagine a scenario right now where he’s not flipped to another team.

We all know that Sandy Alderson was brought in to be the adult in the room and it’s his job to make the unpopular decisions that are in the long-range best interests of the club. While trading Beltran may be unpopular only in my mind, I at least try to content myself with this version of events.

If the Mets end up getting Domonic Brown from the Phillies or Mike Minor from the Braves or Zack Wheeler from the Giants that will be a nice haul and a feather in Alderson’s cap. Originally I believed that concerns over Beltran’s age and durability, along with his contract clause stating his team could not offer him arbitration would significantly limit his trade value. However, the sheer number of teams kicking the tires on him indicates a bidding war is likely, which will drive up the price.

I would still be surprised if Alderson can snag an “A-level” prospect for two-months of Beltran. But then again, who saw Kazmir for Zambrano? The Mets’ chances of pulling off a heist like this seem better now than at any time since the early Frank Cashen days. Generally, I don’t think it’s wise to ask for the moon in a deal, but when you have a half dozen or more teams asking about the same guy, this seems like the time to be bold.

Now, I have a new way I want the Beltran saga to play out, one which I affectionately call the Peppermint Patty plan.

There was a story line in Peanuts where Charlie Brown was going to improve his team by trading his best player to Peppermint Patty in return for five players. Now, Chuck’s best player was Snoopy. Leaving aside the ethical questions about trading your dog, the interesting part about this was from Peppermint Patty’s team.

The five players she was going to trade for Snoopy were never going to play for Charlie Brown’s team. Instead, they were going to “retire” rather than play for the worst team in sandlot history. Only they weren’t really going to retire, they were going to re-join Peppermint Patty’s team. The rest of Chuck’s team finds out about the proposed trade and forces him to cancel the deal.

Back in real life, we find out that Beltran’s new agent – Scott Boras – claims that the veteran outfielder would be open to returning to the Mets as a free agent, even if they dealt him during the regular season. Wouldn’t that be the best of both worlds? The Mets get a chip or two to bolster their farm system and also bring back Beltran for 2012.

It’s hard to imagine a scenario better than Carlos Beltran batting third for the Mets in 2012 and Wheeler pitching Opening Day for Binghamton in Double-A. Because Beltran has come back to be a force for the club in 2011, it’s no longer completely unrealistic to contemplate him coming back in 2012. If he’s willing to come back on a two or possible even three-year deal for less money than the $18 million or so he made in 2011, it would be great to see him back in Queens.

According to FanGraphs, Beltran has already produced $17.4 million worth of value in 2011. Due to age and injury concerns, he should get less than this in free agency. Would Alderson pull the trigger on bringing Beltran back on a two-year, $28-million contract? Will Boras be able to get him an even better deal?

However, that’s putting the cart before the horse. The first part of the Peppermint Patty plan is to trade him for prospects. It will still be tough to see him go and show up against the Mets playing for another team. But as long as there’s hope for him returning in 2012, there’s a reason not to be too depressed about a deal.