On Wednesday evening, Assistant GM John Ricco met with reporters and stated that the Mets are in no rush to move Curtis Granderson from the leadoff spot that he has thrived in.
“That wouldn’t be something we’re out looking for,” Ricco said. “If we end up getting something like that, and it allows us to reshuffle things and maybe we think we’re better with Granderson further down the lineup, we’d be open to it. I think he’s shown over his career he can handle that. But that’s not something that’s a goal.” (Adam Rubin, ESPN NY)
Key free agents who many believe the Mets could be in on this offseason, such as Denard Span and Dexter Fowler, both hit atop their former club’s lineups. With this revelation from Ricco it shows more of where the Mets may or may not be shopping this offseason.
Granderson had a tremendous second year with the Mets, smashing 26 home runs and 33 doubles this past season, mostly while batting leading off. Rubin believes that with the Mets potentially losing Yoenis Cespedes and Daniel Murphy, it could be advantageous for them to move him down in the order for more RBI opportunities. Granderson scored 98 runs in 2015 while driving in 70.
“Curtis did a pretty good job in the role we asked him to perform, Ricco continued. To this point we’re pretty happy with him in that role. He gives us some power. He gives us some on-base percentage. He gives you a little bit of speed. And he starts off the game with the approach we’d like to see.”
It’s hard to argue with Ricco’s logic here as Granderson was phenomenal in the leadoff spot last season, always igniting rallies by hitting his way on or drawing a walk. He had a .365 on-base and between all the walks, base hits and home runs, he did it all for the Mets this year.
However, adding a player like Fowler or Span though could really lengthen this line-up especially with the departures the Mets may see with their three and four spot hitters potentially moving elsewhere. It will be interesting to see where the Mets go on this one.
