In case you haven’t heard, the Philadelphia Phillies got their guy earlier this afternoon, inking outfielder Bryce Harper to a whopping 13-year, $330 million contract with a full no-trade clause and no opt-outs.
Regardless, Mets’ general manager Brodie Van Wagenen told the media after the Mets 3-2 Spring Training victory over the St. Louis Cardinals that the signing doesn’t concern him.
“I really don’t have any reaction,” Van Wagenen said. “I think as we’ve built this team we’ve tried to focus on ourselves to be the best version of ourselves, and to go try to win games.”
“I believe that we can beat about team any time,” he continued. “No signing is going to change that.”
Earlier in the winter, the Mets acquired closer Edwin Diaz from the Seattle Mariners, in part to keep him away from their division rivals. The team did not make a push to try and keep Harper away from other teams in the N.L. East.
Mets’ manager Mickey Callaway echoed Van Wagenen’s notion that this isn’t a big deal, and preached confidence in his squad.
“We built this team a certain way and we’re totally happy with where we’re at right now, it’s fantastic,” Callaway said.
Finally, outfielder Michael Conforto alluded to Harper being in the division last year, and that he believes this doesn’t really change anything.
“I think we stack up great,” Conforto said about the Mets compared to the rest of the division.
[cpm-player skin=”classic-skin” width=”100%” playlist=”true” type=”audio”] [cpm-item file=”https://metsmerizedonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/228-Coutinho-asks-Van-Wagenen-about-Harper-oc-win-games-13-sec.mp3″]DR0000_1103.mp3[/cpm-item] [/cpm-player]
[cpm-player skin=”classic-skin” width=”100%” playlist=”true” type=”audio”] [cpm-item file=”https://metsmerizedonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/228-Van-Wagenen-Mets-still-team-to-beat-oc-that-mindset-5-sec.mp3″]DR0000_1103.mp3[/cpm-item] [/cpm-player]
