Mets Missing Out on Trevor Bauer is a Blessing In Disguise

The top starting pitcher on the open market this winter, Trevor Bauer, pulled a Lebron James mini on Friday, by announcing via his YouTube channel that he is taking his talents to Los Angeles to join the Dodgers.

The Mets offered Bauer more money to try and entice him away from the West Coast, but the California native and UCLA product had his heart set on a homecoming.

While Bauer would have given New York arguably the best rotation in the game, him spurning the Mets isn’t the end of the world — in fact, it could prove to be a blessing in disguise.

For one, we learned that the Mets are willing to exceed the luxury tax threshold, as Bauer’s deal had he signed with New York would have paid him upwards of $40 million in year one.

That money can now be used to fill other holes around the diamond, including some outfield reinforcements, a more cost effective starter, and potentially another infielder or reliever.

For the sake of brevity, I won’t delve too deep into Bauer’s off field persona. However, it is worth mentioning that issues such as him harrassing a college woman on Twitter a couple of years ago, and antics like throwing a ball over the center field fence when being pulled from a game in addition to his consistent activity on Twitter and YouTube would have become more magnified if he struggled in the heat of the bright lights.

These are just a few examples of Bauer’s past issues, but regardless, it’s not something the Mets have to worry about now. They made their offer, and Bauer made his decision. It’s time now to set their sights on wrapping up what has been an extremely productive offseason from a transaction standpoint.

With that being said, let’s take a look at how this benefits the Mets

Possible extensions looming

Had the Mets inked Bauer to such a lucrative deal, it could have made matters tight in extending some of their in-house talent, especially with second baseman Robinson Cano‘s contract hitting the books again next winter.

The Mets have shortstop Francisco Lindor, outfielder Michael Conforto and starting pitchers Noah Syndergaard and Marcus Stroman slated to hit the open market next offseason and should realistically try to retain them all.

It’s feasible to believe that Lindor will reach an extension with the Mets as the team had faith that would ultimately come to fruition upon trading for him. Conforto as well has been an integral part of the Mets offensive success in recent years and is a homegrown star who seems to have mutual interest in returning.

As for Syndergaard and Stroman, not landing Bauer gives the Mets an opportunity to retain both, though even if they re-sign one of them, it would impact the rotation big time going forward.

Had Bauer opted out of his deal with the Mets after year one, the team might not have had to worry about anything, but had he opted in to his contract, keeping these four core guys would be a pipe dream.

Flexibility

Signing Bauer to a record breaking deal would have likely handcuffed the Mets from addressing other needs around the diamond this winter.

That would have meant going into the season without adding more outfield help, another infielder and potentially bullpen reinforcements.

There are still a few appealing options on the open market the Mets can now shift their attention to, including starting pitcher Jake Odorizzi, outfielders Jackie Bradley Jr., Albert Almora or a fallback option in Jake Marisnick, an infielder like Justin Turner and a bunch of low-cost, high-reward relievers.

Ideally, center field should be their top priority now, for one to allow Brandon Nimmo to move to a corner spot and additionally to provide the team some extra padding. Currently, Guillermo Heredia and Mallex Smith are about the extent of the Mets’ backup outfield options.

Splurging on Justin Turner on a one-year deal would also allow the team to use J.D. Davis in a more limited capacity instead of trotting him out defensively where he is a liability on a daily basis.

The team could realistically go into the season with a rotation as is, but the old adage of baseball proves that one can never have enough pitching. Odorizzi would round out the Mets’ starters and give them a solid and serviceable No. 5.

Apart from the free agent market, the Mets have also been linked to Chicago Cubs’ third baseman Kris Bryant this winter, and this could pave the way to try and engage in a deal for him again.

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Overall, the Mets have already had a solid winter, and fanning on Bauer doesn’t change that. Also, they are likely to still add some supplemental pieces to tie the team together, which might not have been possible if they put all their eggs in one basket.

Signing Bauer would have given the Mets a historically good rotation on paper, but it wasn’t a do or die transaction. Now it’s time to get to work and execute on plan’s B and C.