So, I guess the Mets are damned if they do and damned if they don’t.
I will give new general manager Brodie Van Wagenen credit: He is certainly looking to make a splash and define his era and tenure in the Mets front office early.
As Van Wagenen completed his first blockbuster trade as GM, acquiring second baseman Robinson Cano and closer Edwin Diaz from the Seattle Mariners, some of the initial analysis has not been all positive.
‘You gave up too much!’
‘How do you trade away your top overall prospect?’
Those were just some of the criticisms that were heard before and after the deal was on Monday.
We all know how popular baseball is in this market. Amongst sports fans, it dominates the conversation.
We also know that both Mets and Yankees fans love prospects. But above all else, I think all fans like winning the most and the Mets are a better baseball team today then they were last Sunday.
For Van Wagenen, he has basically said there is a new sheriff in town. One that will be more aggressive and is looking to win now and change the look and feel of the Mets from the get-go.
Instead of a glacial pace of change, he looks to be an instrument of it. For that, it is a good thing and very refreshing. You cannot continue to bring back the same guys and hope for different results.
Listen, you might not ever be able to fully win when you make a trade, initially. There are always going to be detractors even when the balance of the trade is tilted in your direction.
That is what sports fans do and for some, they are never happy.
The parameters of the Cano deal are as follows: He and Diaz, along with $20 million dollars in cash to the Mets for Jay Bruce, Anthony Swarzak and prospects Justin Dunn, Jarred Kelenic and Gerson Bautista.
I agree that the Mets paid a heavy price in prospects and former first-round draft choices, like Dunn and Kelenic, but what they brought back in Cano and Diaz makes the Mets a better team in 2019.
Even with Cano being 36 years old and having served an 80 game suspension for a failed drug test (PED) in 2018, I do believe he will be extremely motivated to come back East and play in a city that he adores.
I don’t know how long Cano was using performance-enhancing drugs, but what I do know is that he can flat out hit and will be the best offensive player on the Mets roster.
Let’s also refrain from bringing up past failures of players who came to the Mets and failed after being a star someplace else like Carlos Baerga and Roberto Alomar. I think Cano will hit to the back of his baseball card and will absolutely adore coming back east.
His average season is 42 doubles, 24 HR, 96 RBI while hitting .304. If the Mets get that kind of season, they would be elated and I think they will.
I do know that Diaz was lights out as Seattle’s closer a year ago. He led the AL with 57 saves and was an All-Star as well, featuring a dynamic fastball and a ridiculous slider.
Is he a one-year wonder? For sure, but his stuff is ridiculous and he might be the best closer in baseball.
Clearly, the Mets are in a win-now mode and this trade cements that. Did they give up too much? Probably. But is it a terrible deal? Not if you win.
You worry about what Dunn and Kelenic develop into if you don’t win. The Mets are trying to win and they have a GM that is not allergic to risks, which I like.
It is not like the long game has worked for an organization that has not won a World Series since 1986.
Try and be positive because the Mets are a better team after this trade and I don’t think this is the last big move for Van Wagenen. His first move was refreshing. He wants to contend in 2019 and he wants to win and looks to be aggressive. How do you not like that?
