An MMO Fan Shot by CyYout
Flexibility in a roster is important, as recently pointed out in a Fan Shot by WillyWater88. As he pointed out, flexibility not only protects against losing a player to injury or regression in performance, but it allows the manager to be creative in mixing and matching based on match-ups. The ability to minimize weaknesses and maximize strengths is often what separates the Wild Card teams from the average ones.
Trading for Didi Gregorius would create this kind of flexibility for the Mets in 2015 and perhaps beyond. If the Mets can acquire him without paying a steep price, it would work.
Gregorius is not the defense-first shortstop with the weak bat and no speed that some people believe him to be. Although he has slashed only .243/.313/.316 with 13 home runs and only 3 stolen bases in his career (compared to Tejada: .254/.328/.317) there are several reasons, once you dig down a little deeper, why a platoon with Ruben Tejada could work for the Mets.
Splits:
Didi has an enormous platoon split. As a left handed hitter, he has hit only .184/.257/.233 against lefties, amounting to a .490 OPS in 180 plate appearances. Against right-handed pitchers, however, over 544 plate appearances, his numbers are: .262/.332/.411 amounting to a .743 OPS. This OPS would have tied him for 5th with Ian Desmond among all major league shortstops in 2014.
Ruben, as a right-handed hitter has good splits the other way, albeit not as dramatic of a difference as Didi. For his career, across 497 plate appearances, Tejada has been quite good against lefties: .285/.368/.347 amounting to a .715 OPS.
A platoon of these two otherwise replacement-level players would get the Mets an OPS of approximately .729 for the position. That would have ranked 6th among all major league shortstops in 2014 ahead of noted stars Jose Reyes, Jimmy Rollins, Alexei Ramirez, and way ahead of Elvis Andrus. And that OPS is assuming they get an even number of at-bats, but in reality Gregorius would see more action as most starters are right-handed.
Cost & Control:
This acquisition only works if the asking price does not diminish an area of strength for the Mets, which means keeping deGrom, Wheeler, and Syndergaard.
As noted in an article two weeks ago by Joe D., Arizona GM Dave Stewart explicitly said he was not interested in dealing his shortstops for Niese, Gee, or Colon. Earlier in the offseason, MLB Trade Rumors, in evaluating the Diamondbacks’ needs, wrote that “with a bevy of young pitching talent and a limited budget, the D’backs could look to sign veteran arms to short, affordable deals.” They went on to mention Aaron Harang, Kyle Kendrick, and Roberto Hernandez as possible candidates that could be flipped in the summer “when their staff should be back to full health.”
However, in a division with the Dodgers and Giants, trekking out the likes of those pitchers will put them behind the 8-ball by the time their starters come back. Corbin and Arroyo are unlikely to start the season as they are both recovering from Tommy John surgery and are looking at a June and July return, respectively. So that leaves Wade Miley, Chase Anderson, and Vidal Nuno to head their rotation with the likes of Collmenter, a bullpen arm, and Trevor Cahill, a disappointment in 2013 to round out the starting five. Archie Bradley is a good prospect, but it is unclear whether they think he’s ready to start the season in the majors.
If Stewart’s words about our veterans are not just posturing to attain leverage and he really wants a young starter for his shortstops, then a package with Montero as a centerpiece could be attractive. Even better, an offer of Colon and Montero would give them the innings-eater they seek that could be flipped at the trade deadline, and a young controllable talent. MLBTR also speculates the D’Backs are looking for a bullpen piece. A last-ditch deal sweetener could be someone like Mejia.
Ruben Tejada made $1.1M in 2013 and will cost approximately $1.7M if tendered arbitration. Didi Gregorius was near the league-minimum of $500K. Gregorius is not arbitration eligible until 2016 and under team control through 2020. So the Mets would not be taking on any additional salary. They could take on $2M of Colon saving them money this year and down the line.
Roster Construction:
This is where the strength of this deal can be found. Instead of signing Ryan Ludwick, you have much better in-house cost-effective options for your bench.
You might be saying that the math in terms of splits and cost-control works, but what about the two roster spots? If these two guys play short, what happens to Flores and Murph? Good questions, for sure, so the only answer outside of trading them is, as discussed at the beginning of this Fan Shot, flexibility.
With Wright coming off a shoulder injury and Duda showing poor splits against quality lefties, a quality back-up corner infielder might be necessary. Flores can cover those positions without giving up much in performance.
If Wright is healthy and Duda progresses against southpaws so there is no need for a longer term fill-in, Flores could spell any infield spot and be a feared bat off the bench. Ditto for Murph.
As for defense, you have an upgrade at shortstop, which should alleviate recurring nightmares of a Flores-Murphy double play combo, and a late-inning defensive replacement option no matter who starts. Lastly, it allows the Mets a real DH in American League parks.
The depth chart would look as follows:
C: d’Arnaud, Recker
1B: Duda, Flores, Cuddyer, Murphy
2B: Murphy, Flores, Tejada, Gregorius
SS: Gregorius, Tejada, Flores
3B: Wright, Flores, Murphy
LF: Granderson, den Dekker, Cuddyer, Kirk
CF: Lagares, den Dekker, Granderson, Kirk
RF: Cuddyer, Granderson, den Dekker, Kirk
Despite what their GM has said, I believe Didi is available in a trade, and if the Mets can find the right price, it’s a move that makes a lot of sense for this team.
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This Fan Shot was contributed by CyYout. Have something you want to say about the Mets? Share your opinions with over 30,000 Met fans who read this site daily. Send your Fan Shot to [email protected]. Or ask us about becoming a regular contributor.
