According to Jon Heyman on Twitter, the Mets have deemed outfielder Curtis Granderson “not available.”
The Mets have been clear from the beginning regarding their intentions to trade Jay Bruce, and while he is easily a 30-home run guy, teams are far more interested in Granderson. It seems Sandy Alderson has become fed up with this and has made Granderson unavailable entirely, hoping that taking him off the market will increase interest in Bruce.
Rival executives see Bruce as a possible DH at this point, citing his diminishing defensive skills. However, he does still possess a strong throwing arm, so teams that desperately need a right fielder (i.e. Orioles or Mariners) could play him out there.
The Mets are keen on adding a solid reliever to the mix to set up Addison Reed and Jeurys Familia. They were talking to the Orioles about reliever Brad Brach, however talks hit two snags. The first snag is that the Orioles much prefer Curtis Granderson over Jay Bruce (as do most if not all teams), and the second snag is that the Mets refused to eat any of Bruce’s contract. Snags aside, the Mets and Orioles do still seem to be talking.
The Orioles are trying to bring back slugger Mark Trumbo, however if they fail to do so, they could look to the Mets for a solution to both their vacancy in right field as well as their lineup’s loss of power.
Speaking to reporters, Sandy Alderson said that he called a team about one of their relievers but it was someone who “only wanted to pitch if it was in the 9th inning.” There are two pitchers I reckon he could be referring to. The first of which is Royals’ Wade Davis, however he seems to be going to the Cubs in a deal that would send Jorge Soler to Kansas City.
Another reliever it could be is White Sox closer David Robertson. Robertson would be a phenomenal pickup. The White Sox match up very well with the Mets, who have recently said they are willing to deal prospects for a reliever.
Robertson, 31, has two years left on his contract and is scheduled to make $12 million in 2017 and $13 million in 2018. While that is expensive, if the Mets offer a good enough package, Chicago could eat some of that contract.
Since becoming the White Sox’s full time closer in 2015, he has saved 71 games with a 3.44 ERA. In 125.2 innings he has struck out 161 batters. While those 71 saves are impressive, that 3.44 ERA is very high for a closer. When he was the set-up man for the Yankees and Mariano Rivera he fared much better, as from 2011-2013 in that role he recorded a 1.91 ERA with 258 strikeouts in 193.2 innings.
After trading Chris Sale, the White Sox seemed to have turned their attention to trading David Robertson. Knowing Sandy Alderson, I think he knows it’s a good time to strike a deal, before his price is increased when Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen sign their big contracts.
Stay tuned for more updates.
