Happy August, Mets Hysteria!
We’ve officially entered the dog days of August and the dust has settled after a whirlwind of a 2019 Mets trade deadline special. For a team that most would agree would/should be in seller mode not far removed from double digits under .500 and 7 back in the wild card at the All-Star Break, general manager Brodie Van Wagenen surprised Mets (and all of baseball) Nation. They seemingly bought.
Perhaps working on the 2019 Edition of SNY’s The Five Days of Flushing, Mets brass acquired highly coveted SP Marcus Stroman and his 3.1 WAR, 2.96 ERA, and five star flare from the fading Toronto Blue Jays on July 28, which equates to eons in time before the July 31, 4 p.m. deadline. Additionally, (and take your pick as to which was more surprising between the aforementioned and the following…) the Mets did not move one of their aces in the hole in Noah Syndergaard, career 3.17 ERA, 9.8 K/9, and 14.7 WAR with his two more years of affordable controllability and soon-to-be free agent Zack Wheeler, career 3.85 ERA, 8.9 K/9, and 8.2 WAR.
Between the Stroman sneak attack and the teetering tenure of our aces, other than Jason Vargas‘s shuttle down the Turnpike, the moves and non-moves by Brodie Van Wagenen and co. left the back pages, the Twitterverse, and all of Mets Hysteria baffled. Here are a few possibilities as to why things may have went down how they went down:
1. Do the Mets ever really rebuild? And is this the time to start?
We know the Mets rarely often blow things up. We may want them to. We may know at times it’s what’s best. But we know what, and more importantly who we’re dealing with. Factor finances (whatever they are) and may the age of one particular stakeholder and any other red herring you desire. There’s no rebuild happening.
Add in the fact that this team is arguably closer to contending than not (pausing to duck hurled projectiles) with a core of position players in Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, Michael Conforto, Amed Rosario, Brandon Nimmo (remember him?) and a stable of suitable steeds to toe the rubber. Maybe there’s something here.
2. Mets/Yankees Trade Talk
New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman provided a very simple, yet profound bit of information when making the rounds on New York talk radio this week. He told Evan Roberts and John Jastremski who’ve been refreshingly filling in on WFAN’s afternoon drive that while the doors are open for a trade between the likes of the Mets and Yankees, or any division rival, is only likely to occur if the two teams are heading in opposite directions (buying vs. selling or contending vs. rebuilding). Translation: Brodie made it clear to Cash that the Mets are not rebuilding.
Photo by @KristinBasnett
3. All’s Fair in Love and Current (not inherited) Prospects
Is it so bad to use an active market to build for next year, regardless of the optics for this year? I know, I know… AJ Ramos‘s acquisition during the 2017 trade deadline clearly proved putrid. But that does not rule out Stroman’s potential impact on the 2020 Mets.
And as we know in all sports landscapes, there’s often no love lost between a new GM and his/hers inherited personnel. Brodie’s made it clear from the controversial (is that the most diplomatic way to phrase that?) Cano/Diaz trade that he and his new annex of analysts don’t hold Sandy Alderson’s prospects in such high regard.
This is a new regime. Clearly Anthony Kay and Simeon Woods Richardson were not long for this administration. Like it or not, this is how it is in all sports and their respective organizations.
4. No-limit Holdem
It has been suggested by some on the beat that the acquisition of Stroman, which initially seemed a prodigious leverage move, went for naught since neither Syndergaard nor Wheeler were moved. Could it be that there was a fallback bi-product of this move?
It could conceivably be argued that Van Wagenen played a strong game of poker (pausing, again, for hurled projectiles). By dangling his top chips until the 11th hour of the deadline, he may have kept others both on the hook and/or going home empty. Other than Houston’s blockbuster acquisition of Arizona’s Zack Greinke at the last minute, no other contender scored a stud steed. This could have been either by design or a pleasant side effect.
5. Cooler Heads
There were heavy reports that there were issues between Noah Syndergaard and management. Noah even had his moments on social media alluding to the instability of his status, “Pitcher for the New York Mets, for now.” as he took to tweeting. The noise was loud.
What went quietly overshadowed in the wake was the patchwork summit meeting between Noah, Brodie, and owner Jeff Wilpon during the end of the deadline period. The noise was real. The making amends went virtually unnoticed.
And while we often chastise inconsistent organizational communication that comes with this club, credit all parties for prioritizing what was best for the club and themselves. Cooler heads seemed to have prevailed, for now, and Noah Syndergaard is still a Met, and happy to be so according to his fantastic “Hey everyone, players only meeting in 5 min.” follow up.
