The Mets trading Noah Syndergaard has to be something dreamed up solely by the San Diego Padres. You would think so, but once again, there’s no direction home for the Mets.
Mets starting pitcher, Noah Syndergaard, was a target of the San Diego Padres back in July, and they’re at it again now whetting the appetites of talk radio and sports pundits across the continent. It can’t be stopped.
As usual, the Mets seem to be befuddled, and all signs point once again to an organization where, especially at the tippy-top, the Mets don’t have a clue as to what they should do. Here’s the double-speak of Jeff Wilpon on Noah Syndergaard:
So, let’s try to understand this. Is Wilpon saying that even when there is no money involved, and there’s a pure baseball trade on the table, Brodie Van Wagenen must first “suggest” the trade to Wilpon, and “then we’ll do it?” Sure sounds like it.
But moving away from that dysfunction, why would Van Wagenen even consider trading Noah Syndergaard, a starting pitcher with three full seasons of team control remaining before he reaches free agency?
Four years younger at 26, Syndergaard would seemingly loom as a better bet for the Mets to hold onto over Jacob deGrom, who one way or another is going to cost the Mets a pile of money, if not today then very soon due to his impending free agency.
I get it. Jacob deGrom just won a Cy Young and, arguably, he just had a superhuman season unmatched since the days of Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson – fine -, but if the Mets indeed are willing to listen to offers on Syndergaard, to make any sense, they should also open the window on deGrom as well.
Of course, never mind the fact that if the Mets listen to offers on either pitcher, it flies in the face of what Fred Wilpon said a few days ago that the Mets are not in a rebuilding mode and are in it to win it based on the strength of their starting pitching.
This bouncing around in mid-air got the best of Kevin Kiernan, writing in the New York Post, coining the term “Insecurity 101” to describe the Mets indecision in defining who they are and what they want – and sticking to it.
Kiernan believes, and I concur, the Mets need to be concentrating on the free agent market, where some mid-level players, with livable salaries, can be signed to help the team. Implied is they needn’t be wasting time and energy on trading Syndergaard or deGrom. Maybe later, in July if the Mets flop, just not now.
At the moment, the Mets are in final negotiations with their insurance company to settle the last year of the David Wright contract. Plus, they will receive monies for Yoenis Cespedes for as long as he out. These are dollars that could be in play (up to $25 million) to engage in the free-agent market – if the Wilpons see fit to invest in the team.
Insecurity 101 – the standard bearer of the New York Mets. When will they ever learn, when will they ever learn?
Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona. Not all holes, or games, are created equal.
