With Trevor Bauer officially a Los Angeles Dodger, the Mets will now look for other ways to complete their rotation. In addition, they can now devote their attention and money to covering other list needs. One of those needs of the squad is a strong central defender.
According to Ken Davidoff and Joel Sherman of New York Post, the Mets can step up their efforts to lead Jackie Bradley Jr. in Queens. It seems logical that the Mets would wait for the Bauer chip to drop before making other moves. From Sportrac, the Mets were approximately $ 28 million below the luxury tax threshold on January 16, 2021. Add Aaron Wolf ‘s $ 3 million, and the Mets are now about $ 25 million at the time the tax begins.
The Dodgers will pay Bauer $ 40 million in the first year of his contract, according to Mark Feinsand.
Trevor Bauer gets $ 102 million for 3 years from the Dodgers, per source. He has an opt-out after each of the first two years; $ 40 million in 2021, $ 45 million in 2022. He will be the highest paid player in MLB history on the 21st and again on the 22nd. Good job @AgentRachelLuba And Jon Fetterolf from @zssports_law.
– Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) February 5, 2021
Joel Sherman he tweeted that the Mets had offered Bauer more money, so that if they had signed Bauer, the Mets would have significantly exceeded the luxury tax and would have faced the choice of paying the fee or taking off the payroll. In either case, it is unlikely that they would have spent Bradley as well.
MLB commercial rumors predicts that Bradley will send a deal worth about $ 16 million a year. While MLBTR suggests a two-year contract may be enough for Bradley, others speculate the former Red Sox center-back could end up signing for four or five years.
With the $ 25 million Mets under the luxury tax, Bradley can certainly fit in and have room for another spinning arm (the Jake Odorizzi Rumors of “is or not” continues to swirl).
Bradley is a good, though not ideal, fit for the Mets. Defensively in midfield, it would be a significant improvement Brandon Nimmo. Bradley’s DRS in 2020 was 5 (race 48), compared to Nimmo’s at -5 in 2020 (race -14). Bradley in midfield would allow Nimmo to move to left field, where he is above the defensive average and well above the Mets ’other options. Dominic Smith i Jd davis (if Davis is not at third base).
The Virginia native, however, is not a great offensive player, with a .239 / .321 / .412 career line with 98 homers in eight seasons. He has an 18.0 bWAR career, with his best season in 2016, when he posted a 5.8 bWAR.
Another reason why Bradley is not suitable is that he is a left hitter and would join an already tilted left side lineup (Jeff McNeil, Nimmo, Smith, Michael Comfort). The other concern is the length of a potential contract. If Bradley signs for four or five years, he would be in his thirties at the end of the contract.
There are other options the Mets should consider for central field defense. None of them would be the ideal fit (Albert Almora, Delino DeShields Jr. are among the options). Both DeShields and Almora are right-handed sticks, but neither is as good a defender as Bradley.
In the end, the Mets lost Bauer, whose addition of the rotation would have given the Mets among the best, if not the best rotation of the game.
However, the Mets are still subject to the luxury tax and have the working capital and the opportunity to meet other needs. It will be interesting to see how they continue to add to their roster during the waning days of the low season.
