When you ask almost any Mets fan what the biggest needs are for this team in their first winter under Steve Cohen ownership (pending approval), they will probably tell you three things: pitching, catching, and center field. While all those are true, what if the best offseason move for this club is making a trade for Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor?
Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com recently wrote an article listing Lindor’s likeliest trade suitors, and had the Mets right at the top. Castrovince noted that the Mets have exactly the kinds of pieces the Indians would desire if they were to trade Lindor, which includes several young shortstops to replace the 26-year-old in Amed Rosario, Andrés Giménez and Ronny Mauricio, along with a “glut” of corner infield/outfield/DH types between Dominic Smith, Brandon Nimmo, J.D. Davis and Brett Baty.
Most baseball fans are well aware of Lindor’s frustrations with the Indians unwillingness to spend money, especially with just one year before he is scheduled to hit free agency and likely command an eight to 10-year deal that is north of $300 million. When asked by reporters after the season ended if Cleveland could afford to keep him, the often jubilant Lindor gave a brutally honest answer that seemed directed at Indians owner Paul Dolan: “Of course. It’s a billion–dollar team. Did you just see MLB just signed a $3 billion (TV) contract?”
It sounds like Lindor’s days in Northeast Ohio are numbered, and that’s good news for fans of teams looking for a superstar talent that plays up-the-middle. Since stepping into the league at 21-years-old in 2015, Lindor’s 28.9 fWAR leads all other shortstops in baseball, and his 28.4 bWAR is second behind only Manny Machado, who has spent a significant amount of his career at third base.
Most fans argument against Lindor is that the Mets already have two quality shortstops with the aforementioned Giménez and Rosario, and they should be focusing on other areas of need. While it’s a good argument in principle, it seems like many are simply not aware of how much of an upgrade Lindor would be over those two on both sides of the field.
While Rosario showed flashes of brilliance in the second half of 2019, and Giménez spent 50 games in 2020 displaying some of the best middle-infield defense the Mets have had since Rey Ordóñez, both players just aren’t near the level of Lindor.
The Puerto Rico native has posted 46 defensive runs saved since 2015, which ranks fourth among all shortstops with a minimum of 5,000 innings in the field. And his 118 wRC+ since that time is tied for fifth among all shortstops with a minimum of 1,500 plate appearances.
Lindor and Colorado’s Trevor Story are the only two shortstops in the league that are ranked within the top five of both areas. Story could be another name to keep an eye on as a trade target since he is scheduled to join Lindor in free agency after the 2021 season, and the Rockies ownership/front-office doesn’t seem like they currently have winning at the top of their priority list.
In Lindor’s four full seasons as a major-leaguer from 2016-2019, he has averaged 30 HR, 83 RBI, 39 doubles, 20 stolen bases, and 10 DRS. When have the Mets ever had a middle-infielder with that kind of all-around ability? José Reyes is probably the closest, but he never possessed the power and defense Lindor has. Edgardo Alfonzo was a terrific hitter and steady defender at second base, but couldn’t run like Lindor. Howard Johnson could mash baseballs as well, but he was mostly a third baseman.
Last December, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported that the Mets had engaged in “serious dialogue” with the Indians about Lindor and aggressively tried to acquire him at the Winter Meetings when Cleveland had floated the idea of moving the young shortstop. Rosenthal suggested that it likely would’ve cost the Mets their shortstop Rosario and two top prospects for Lindor’s services. Jeff McNeil was one of Cleveland’s prime targets in their talks with the Mets, but that proved to be too rich for their blood as Lindor remained in an Indians uniform for 2020.
That was back when Lindor had two years of control remaining and hedge fund billionaire Steve Cohen only had an agreement in principle to buy the Mets, which fell apart in February. Now it’s down to one year before free agency for the Indians infielder, and Cohen’s $14.6 billion net-worth is just a few weeks away from an ownership vote that would officially give him full control of the club’s payroll and finances.
Some baseball insiders have pegged the 2021 trade deadline as the time when Lindor should be considered a lock to move, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to anyone if a trade occurs this offseason, especially with Lindor projected to make around $22 million in his final year of arbitration and many teams expected to cut payroll after a pandemic-shortened season without fans. It’s pretty clear Indians ownership has no interest in giving Lindor the massive contract he desires, so a big-market team set to have the richest owner in baseball seems like the perfect landing spot.
No one should deny that players like Trevor Bauer, J.T. Realmuto and/or George Springer would make the Mets a better team in 2021, but there are plenty of other options in free agency and the trade market to improve those holes for this club. Cohen giving Sandy Alderson the autonomy to expand the analytics department and technology should only make it easier to find those other options. And who is to say that the Mets can’t get Lindor while also signing one of Bauer, Realmuto or Springer? This isn’t Jeff Wilpon’s Mets team for much longer.
Back up the Brinks truck, Uncle Stevie. If you really want to make your name known and show this fanbase you aren’t playing around early on, get Alderson to rescue Lindor from the Dolan family and make him one of the highest paid infielders in the sport.
