25
2013
MMO Fair Or Foul: Why Not Start 2014 A Little Earlier?
An article by 
Metsmerized is all about representing the whole of the Mets fan base, not just the ones who worship Sandy or those who don’t, and not just the ones who dominate Twitter and those fans who don’t. Eight in ten Mets fans I ask don’t even have Twitter accounts and look at me like I have ten heads when I ask. That said, yesterday I presented an argument from Jon Presser of The Shea Nation on why we shouldn’t go after free agent outfielder Michael Bourn. Today I bring you a reason why as presented by The Bitter Bill of the Daily News.
The Mets may be content to have Zach Wheeler start the season in Las Vegas, but the young pitcher’s agent, apparently doesn’t believe that.
In a tweet that was retweeted to the masses by Adam Rubin (you still following this), Al Goetz, Wheeler’s’ agent said, “If the Mets have 5 starters better than what I saw today from @Wheelerpro45, they will win the East. #bigleagueready
Ok, the guy is his agent, so of course he has a a horse in the race, but assuming this guy isn’t blowing smoke up you know where (that’s a big assumption), you have to be fired up. Ok, it’s not as if the Mets starting 5 as of Jan. 25 is Gooden, Darling, Ojeda, El Sid and Aguilera, but if Wheeler is already on par with or better than Harvey, Niese and Gee, the future – dare I say it – may actually be as bright as we think it is.
Which leads me back to Michael Bourn. If Harvey is going to pitch a full season, if Wheeler is going to be up sometime in June (maybe sooner), if d’Arnaud is going to be here, why not start 2014 a bit earlier? I have to admit, I haven’t looked real hard at the FA list for 2014, but you figure if there are some big names on it, the Mets will go after them, but so will everyone else. Ya think the Yankees will take two winters off in a row? Bourn is out there, and it seems to be at a reasonable price, Yes, the 2013 Mets may still stink with him around, but at least another stepping stone to the future will be here.
You can read Bill Price’s full article here.
For those of you who see 2014 as the magic year, maybe the Price is right. Those of you who still believe we are years away from a championship, may think otherwise. I myself, don’t have a particular bias toward getting Bourn or not. Maybe it’s because he doesn’t excite me as much as some of the younger options that were previously available – and had much more upside. I guess those other players spoiled me a little.
About the Author: Joe DeCaro
I'm a lifelong Mets fan who loves writing and talking about the Amazins' 24/7. From the Miracle in 1969 to the magic of 1986, and even the near misses in '73 and '00, I've experienced it all - the highs and the lows. I started Mets Merized Online in 2005 to feed my addiction. Follow me on Twitter @metsmerized.
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NL East Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braves | 24 | 18 | .571 | - |
| Nationals | 23 | 20 | .535 | 1.5 |
| Phillies | 20 | 23 | .465 | 4.5 |
| Mets | 16 | 24 | .400 | 7.0 |
| Marlins | 11 | 32 | .256 | 13.5 |
Last updated: 05/18/2013
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Would I like Bourn on the team, pick or no pick, probably yes. More because we need defense desperately in the outfield. If this deal really goes down and they lose their draft pick I will be completely confused. This potential signing goes against everything the team has been doing which is hoarding prospects and spending money.
Are ticket sales that bad? There were other options out there that didn’t require losing a draft pick, so why now and so late. And don’t give me because he isn’t signed, this is typical Boras, either pay high or settle for a one year deal.
I think you meant to say “not” spending money and yes I agree. What’s the plan? What I’ve seen has been a reactive direction that is heavily influenced by fan perception, marketing and moves that have PR value. It’s not a true “rebuild” plan and it’s obviously not a “win now” plan. It is not a hybrid of those two either. David Wright seems to know what the plan is but he’s not telling. Apparently that’s why he gave the team a hometown discount to stay. (sarcasm font)
The more the media that cover the Mets mention Bourn to the Mets, the less likely I can actually see him signing here. There’s the draft pick compensation problem. There’s the reported contract (though who really knows) he’s still balking over (3-4 years at $13-15MM AAV, no thanks). There’s the agent with a penchant for mystery teams and big deals. There’s the market you have to believe is more than the Mets and Mariners. There’s the whole…this goes in the face of everything we have been hearing for the last few months from our front office.
Like I said yesterday, the Mets were kicking tires on Bourn and got their hand caught in the cookie jar. The song and dance is them playing things out so they can say…look we are trying. Good for them, but I’m not buying it.
If we signed Michael Bourn, our line-up would look something like this by June…
cf – Bourn
2b – Murphy
3b – Wright
1b – Davis
c – d’Arnaud
lf – Duda
rf – Brown
ss – Tejada
Bench: Buck, Turner, Niewenhuis, Valdespin & Baxter (Quintanilla at AAA for quick call-up if Tejada goes down)
The real question is what combination of players would induce Loria to trade Stanton to the Mets? Assume Wheeler and Harvey are out of the question.
Ike Davis, plus Familia, Mejia & Valdespin? Different combination?
With Stanton, the line-up looks like this…
cf – Bourn
2b – Murphy
3b – Wright
rf – Stanton
1b – Duda
c – d’Arnaud
lf – Brown/Baxter
ss – Tejada
Pretty much a powerhouse with speed at the very top. The outfield would be stellar defensively, as Brown and Stanton have absolute cannons and Bourn can patrol cf and the gaps. He’s a gold-glover. Baxter & Kirk are excellent back-ups.
The infield is strong on the left side with Wright and Tejada and a little sketchy on the right side with Murphy and Duda. I question whether they can co-exist on the same side.
So, if we really, really wanted to throw into gear this year, it would require signing Bourn and acquiring Stanton without gutting our rotation.
Our starting rotation would be set, as would our catching, outfield and right side of infield. The left side of the infield could use late-inning defensive support and our bullpen is not quite resolved. But this team would be built to last.
Stanton = Niese, Davis & Valdespin
Stanton = Niese, Duda & Valdespin
Stanton = Niese, Mejia/Familia & Valdespin
Help me out here. How do we get 23 year old Giancarlo Stanton without giving up Harvey or Wheeler?
Alright Tommy, I’ll give a good crack at it. Just for the record, I believe you have to give up Wheeler to get Stanton. What the Mets should ask back should not only include Stanton, but also Steve Cishek & Justin Nicolino.
Without Wheeler:
Niese, Flores, Fulmer, Mateo, Nimmo, Duda
Niese, Flores, Montero, Verrett, Duda
With Wheeler:
Wheeler, Flores, Mateo, Fulmer, Duda
Wheeler, Flores, Nimmo, Montero, Duda
Wheeler, Flores, Mateo, Nimmo, Pill, Duda
This article by Ken Rosenthal sums it up quite nicely.
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/Mets-and-Bourn-match-unlikely-without-break-from-rules-012413
I posted this link earlier, You’re welcome………
It was the same opinion I posted yesterday. Thank you, you’re welcome, and have a nice day.
You too… Maybe i should’ve exchange email with you about the link first so i shouldn’t have reposted it.
Signing Bourn maybe for one year would be great but I think Matt DenDecker will give you similar numbers soon with more power and more RBI’s. The strikeouts will be a wash between the two. DenDecker can play a great centerfield and is pretty fast as well.
I want to see MDD shake off his rough start in Buffalo last season before I get high hopes for his offense.
Agreed – MDD’s history both in college and in the minors suggests that needs time to acclimate to the next level. Bourn and MDD are actually quite similar, with MDD getting the edge in the power zone. Bourn would probably be an excellent mentor for MDD, which could yield a long-term benefit.
I also think we should see what we have in Andrew Brown. He may be this year’s sleeper. He’s an outstanding outfielder with an absolute cannon for an arm. He would likely thrive in a mild platoon situation with Mike Baxter, who has demonstrated to be a competent professional outfielder, from Queens no less!
That’s what makes acquiring Giancarlo Stanton so freaking compelling. If we signed Bourn, achieved a competent platoon b/w Brown & Baxter and placed Stanton in RF, we’d go from having the worst OF in MLB to having one of the absolute best both offensively and defensively.
The more I think about it… well, let’s put it this way…
Would you have traded half a season of Carlos Beltran for many years of Giancarlo Stanton?
Sandy – Close your eyes and pull the trigger!
I too was thinking of the alternative being possibly DenDecker.
I would argue that we don’t start jumping the gun here. Rings similar to 2005-ish. Let keep the course.
And I do think that Bourn is a long term solution. Please get him. Then you can add Pence or something similar in 2014 to push them over the hump.
The miser and the con man. Can a miser fall for the ripoff of a con man? Why is SA so intrigued to give the perception for Scott Borus’ benefit that he is looking at flyers for steak specials on London Bourn? Is it a ploy to break SA’s miser image? I think there is something else. SA is looking to lock up Harvey for a long time while he is affordable. Borus as a rule wants to test FA. Harvey grew up a Yankee fan. Remember how the Yankees were wetting in their pants for David Cone. There are even bigger puddles now. Will a con man will win SA’s minute soft spot? Will the Mets be fleeced in FA again?.
Well, if we want to play pop psychologists, as people around here so often do, we should fear the evil pressure on the rookies. Bringing in a guy like Bourne might put pressure on them too quickly.
Of course, that is a load of bunk and these are grown men. The actual reason is they are in fact going to get smacked around a little. Bringing in Bourne, even if he has a great year, would be wasted. Let the newbies take their lumps, prove they belong, and then bring in the big free agents to supplement them.
I agree for sure with the concept, of getting some additional foundation pieces in now, even if you consider 2013 a transition year. If the talent is there, then yes, grab it when you can.
But, there is still enough to debate with Bourn to wonder if he is the right guy to make a huge (for the Mets) commtiment to right now, since odds are there will not be a lot of them available!
If the owners and FO are ever serious about starting 2014 early and are willing to spend some money, then they should be thinking bigger fish than Bourne. They need to pull out all the stops and go for the true prize now. I’m talking Stanton here. We know eventually Loria will have to move him and Alderson should be sniffing down in Miami right now. They’ve spent 3 years stocking their farm. How many of these prized prospects will actually make it? Its time to let go. The Mets have always overvalued their prospects through the years only to have them bust. Its time to move away from that thinking. And now for the spending part of this…….if a deal can be worked out, it should be contingent on Stanton accepting a fair first generation contract through 2020. It would reward Stanton through his arbitration years and cover about 2 or 3 years of free agency eligibility, putting him at about the same age as Wright was for his 2nd contract. I know this sounds like a pipe dream, but stranger things happened.
I been saying this for awhile now…..
Great we collected kids and have a strong pitching staff now and maybe in the future….
Whatever CORE anyone expected us to build is HERE!
Even Wheeler and d’Arnaud will BE HERE before the season is out….
Why are we going to wait till thier clock starts to build around them?
Clock already has started on Davis, Harvey, Niese, Gee, Tejada and Murphy.
Why aren’t we looking at getting pieces that are available now that makes NEXT year’s task of filling the remaining holes easier?
You MIGHT find one OFer next year…But your not going to find TWO!
If we are too many pieces away from competing this year then get at least ONE piece so next year your not the SAME amount of pieces away two years running….
Now I’m not saying Bourne is worth what might be there with the 12th Pick and I’m not even sure he is going to cost us that pick.
But when you a GM and say WHAT OUTFIELD and you punt on what may have been the largest OF FA class in years you have to wonder what is he waiting for?
Is money really more important than failing?
Whatever promise people thought was coming in 2014 (used to be 2013 till we decided to play soccer with the can) is not going to materialize unless they set up all that CORE you think they have and get it help….
The Yankee, Brave and Phillie Cores everyone point to had a lot of good players filled in before that core arrived.
And if we don’t try and fill the holes now not only will that core not succeed but it will be wasted, lose it’s value because the numbers will be so bad no one will want them in trade!
Some I know contend that the Mets should not go into the free agent market until they develop a nucleus to build around. Well, the nucleus is about here and there is no sign that the Mets will then go build around them.
Regarding that nucleus, in 2014 it is safe to say that part of the plan is that Harvey, Wheeler and d’Arnaud improve upon their rookie and sophomore seasons, Davis, Gee, Tejada and Duda come into their own and others like Wright, Murphy and Niese maintain their current standards of play. And perhaps some of the rookie pitchers start showing signs as relievers.
So the pressing issues of the bullpen and outfield should then be addressed after this season and then Sandy should start making the moves into free agency in earnest.
The re-building will be incomplete because the team is again not going to have the money to finish what it started. The financial situation is not better and only getting worse with the loans and Piccard client’s starting to be paid off in 2015.
What we done are moves that have only saved money. We created the outfield and bullpen problem and will not have financial resources to resolve those two pieces to the puzzle.
For the fan, there is only the hope that all the prospects they obtain and draft somehow all work out and can continue to replenish many of the young players that they will no longer be able to afford if they do produce well once they can command large salaries through arbitration and free agency. It is impossible for them to do anything else unless the Wilpons are willing to continue taking $32 million out of their personal pocket or from the profits made from their other holdings each year like they did in 2011. And as business people, I don’t think that is what they want to do.
Sorry , but the business of baseball has to take precedent over the business of baseball. Sad, but true.
I think we should sign Bourn now, if we could get him for 3 guaranteed years, lost draftpick or not. He brings a lot that we need– speed, defense, SBs– he´s not too old, and he´s at least as good as almost everyone who might be available as a FA next year. The team and the fanbase needs a sign that ownership cares about winning too.
As to the draft pick, I saw something on AmazinAve that claimed that a pick in the 11-15 range has a 16% chance of becoming a significant ML player. That means an 84% chance that he won´t. Bourn is already significant.
We´ve invested a lot in prospects recently, especially in the pitching area, and that is starting to pay off. We´ve got more pitching in the pipeline, but no OFers.
Adding Bourn now would make this a much more legitimate OF and team. Supplement that with a potential trade for someone like Dayan Viciedo, and we´d be much closer to being serious contenders.