So why didn’t the Mets trade Zack Wheeler this offseason? Back when they were surfing the market for the likes of Starlin Castro, Didi Gregorius, Yunel Escobar, etc., why did trade discussions end at the mention of Zack Wheeler?
Well Joel Sherman of the New York Post has it all figured out. But doesn’t everybody now?
“The perception they gave to the industry was Wheeler was part of a group of protected players who were not going to be dealt.”
“In reality, the Mets did not talk about Wheeler because they thought a swap never would go through, The Post has learned.”
“As part of any trade medical information is exchanged between teams, and there was enough troubling details already about the condition of Wheeler’s elbow — the need for MRI exams, a torn tendon, the eventual use of a platelet enrichment shot — that the Mets believed any club that looked at the portfolio would rescind the trade.”
Sherman also adds that there were broad conversations with the Cubs regarding Wheeler this offseason, centering around Starlin Castro, Javier Baez and Addison Russell.
I seem to recall covering those rumors back in December as well as several others regarding talks for a shortstop with Arizona, Seattle, Minnesota and Texas.
