Generally, when a batter goes 0-for-4 in a game, or a team gets swept four games by an opponent, it is hardly the time for praise and accomplishment. With Trevor Bauer announcing on Friday afternoon he is returning to his roots in Southern California, the Mets lost out on the final big name free agent of the winter.
DJ LeMahieu, J.T. Realmuto, George Springer, along with Bauer will be plying their trades elsewhere. When Steve Cohen took over as Mets owner in the autumn, most Mets fans could not conceive losing out on signing anybody, and yet here we are scarcely two weeks from spring training, and the Mets got shut out.
Failure? I say no, hardly.
The Mets had one of, if not the best, offseasons in their nearly 60-year history. They, made arguably the biggest trade of the winter in trading for Francisco Lindor. The 27-year-old shortstop, if extended, would solidify the Mets middle infield for years. In that trade the Mets also landed veteran pitcher Carlos Carrasco, who’s coming off a 2020 season where he pitched to a 2.91 ERA.
The Mets addressed a gaping need at catcher when they signed free agent James McCann. An All-Star in 2019, McCann brings both offensive and defensive skills at backstop and is said to work well with his pitching staff. Relievers Trevor May and Aaron Loup will bolster a bullpen that has been shaky. Jordan Yamamoto and Yennsy Diaz could add further support to the pen.
And they even managed to keep one of their own, Marcus Stroman, who accepted his qualifying offer.
So far, the Mets have upgraded at catcher, shortstop, starter, second base (removal of Robinson Cano), and bullpen. All this not even three months into the Cohen regime. The job isn’t finished as the Amazin’s need better defense in center and another starting pitcher or two, but the job doesn’t look as vast as it did six months ago.
A word or two on Bauer. The Mets have been trying to create a culture shift since the new ownership took over in the fall of 2020. Trying to escape the “Here we go again, the same old Mets” mantra heard over decades has not been easy. With the unfortunate events surrounding both Jared Porter and Mickey Callaway, some wonder if the Mets understand the basic art of interviewing. And even though a CV doesn’t normally contain sexual proclivities and other goings on in a person’s life, the Mets have said that a review of their vetting process will occur.
Bauer has an out-sized and perhaps a tad insecure personality. He seems to anger easily as was the case with fights he has had with Twitter followers, two that grew ugly with women prompting a Bauer apology. Although the Mets made a strong bid for his services, they did not break the bank nor yield to a player who has been called a narcissist by some. My first reaction was delight when he chose the Dodgers and Mets Twitter seemed to agree with as many as 65% polled were not unhappy about today’s ‘loss’.
Bauer may win 100 games with the Dodgers, but he won’t be in Page 6 for shenanigans the Mets don’t need.
A final word or two on free agents. Here is a link that shows the plethora of players available in the winter of 2021-22. It is loaded at every position. The Mets will, without question, be prominently involved a year from now. So if this winter proved to be less than what the Mets expected, there is plenty of time to build that championship team Cohen and the fans so crave.
Building a winner is not accomplished overnight. Although sports like basketball and hockey can largely be impacted by one offseason, baseball and football largely can not. There have been rare exceptions, but building a winning culture takes time. Now that’s the last thing the fans, who dissect and micro-manage every move the Mets make or don’t make, want to hear. Yet, many of the sport’s greatest franchises had their share of lean years.
One free agent class does not make or break things.
But the Mets have a chance to start next year’s free agency period with a bang as two of the younger FAs available are already on the Mets roster, Michael Conforto and Lindor, both of whom are 27. It is essential for the Mets to keep them both as Mets for the foreseeable future.
It has also been shown throughout most of recent MLB history that the teams that grab all the free agents and ignore the luxury tax, seldom rack up championships. The Dodgers might make that last sentence moot, but they fell short many times in the playoffs before grabbing the brass ring in 2020. Only time will tell if Los Angeles becomes a dynasty. But the Yankees, who are known for signing the blue-ribbon star, have only won one championship in the last 20 years.
For practical purposes a franchise requires several drafts, free agents, and a lucky trade or two for success. It also needs stability in the front office and in the dugout. This, over time, builds a culture of success, a paradigm that Cohen has said he wants for the New York Mets.
This offseason was not a strikeout; it was maybe a double or even a triple. And the best part is, it is not over yet. Those micro-managers out there who want Cohen’s $14 billion spent in one winter don’t understand reality or how baseball (or business) works. I say let’s build a team that will contend and be a legitimate championship contender for years and years, bury “the same old Mets” mantra and move forward with a pride seldom seen in orange and blue.
It can be done, and the offseason of 2020-21 will be looked at in the future as a building block for that pride and be considered a rousing success.
