Regardless of whether or not you think Sandy Alderson and the Mets need to make a big splash deal before this season’s trade deadline, here is some sobering information about the perception around the league regarding the financial state of the team.
In his latest piece for ESPN Insider, Buster Olney says that there is no indication that Mets ownership is going to provide the funds needed for the front office to make any needed upgrade to the roster.
“The Mets need to make it clear to other teams that they have the financial flexibility to make a deal, because the current perception of them in the market is that they will not be taking on salary during the summer.”
“This makes no sense, given the incredible opportunity they have right now and the shockingly subpar performance of the Washington Nationals.”
This is exactly what I’ve been trying to convey since the offseason and why I felt the need to call out a couple of Mets beat writers and Mets bloggers last week who write ridiculous articles saying: “Sandy Alderson needs to do something!” or “Do something, Mets!”
I love how some of these so-called insiders keep saying they talk to their baseball people and cite their sources about going after Ben Zobrist, Aramis Ramirez and even Ryan Braun, and yet never mention Mets ownership and their inability to increase payroll much beyond the current $100 million level.
They push out these half-cocked, half-assed conjectures with nary a mention of the team’s financial state.
Now I’m not saying that the Mets need to make a big splash move, I’m only saying that it’s ridiculous to suggest such a move while ignoring the current financial climate. It’s ignorant to consider one without mentioning the other.
While I am perfectly happy with seeing how the team does with Dilson Herrera and Travis d’Arnaud back in the lineup and Daniel Murphy less than a week away, the point here is this…
What if the team is racked with another devastating long-term injury or two, let’s say Lucas Duda and d’Arnaud again? It’s a crying shame that a big market team like the Mets would most likely be unable to do anything about it.
And that’s the sad part in all of this – not that the team needs to do something now – but that even if they needed to they probably couldn’t. And that’s the true reality of the situation.
