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I just noticed that text at the bottom of TOP HAT: | SANDY: CESPEDES NOT RIGHT FOR METS |
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Just a reminder about all of the speculation last winter [Cespedes not right, not in the budget, Zobrist or dick!] and none of it was correct. |
It's funny how two sides of a debate can look back a year later and both feel that they were completely right. I disagree. I think that the speculation surrounding each of those thoughts was 100% correct.
1. Cespedes not a Good Fit
Cespedes not being a good fit wasn't, in fact, speculation, but rather an idea conveyed by Sandy Alderson. The article the cover references is here:
http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/ ... 1.11303094
The idea conveyed by Alderson, was that it wasn't money that was preventing the Mets from pursuing Cespedes. It's that he would have to play centerfield, and although it made sense for a few months, it was not a good fit for five or six years.
The speculation, conveyed here on this board, was that this was all bullshit. First off, there was no guarantee that Conforto was an everyday player (he was still not facing lefties). And at best, even if Cespedes had to play center, it would only be for a year or two until Granderson's contract expired, when either Ces, or Conforto, if he stuck, could move over to RF. The speculation was that Sandy was spewing garbage so as to not say we don't want to give him the big money deal. (I think one of my themes last winter was calling bullshit on Sandy Alderson.)
And in the end, it was just that, bullshit. Ultimately, the Mets signed Cespedes, and stuck him right back in centerfield. Not because he magically got better in CF, or because a corner OF spot opened up, but because he came back to them and agreed to a short-term deal. Money, money, and money. Less Money = Good Fit
The speculation was actually dead on accurate.
2. Cespedes Not In the Budget
I don't know which specific statement you are referencing here, but the speculation I offered last winter was that there was absolutely, positively room for Cespedes in the budget. First off, a big market team should be able to afford Cespedes, even with everyone else they signed. Secondly, if the Mets were hamstrung by budget, they still could have afforded him by foregoing the De Aza/Cabrera/Blevins/Walker/Colon pu-pu platter.
In fact, both statements were true. And thus, the speculation, was again correct.
On Edit: Found the actual conversation:
| They certainly have room in their budget to get a big name outfielder if they wanted one. |
And how is it that we know this? |
Because they are at $90 million now. Without the Cabrera signing they would be at $81 million. Even if you added Heyward's $23 million, you're still only at $103 million. Which is what the payroll was to begin 2015. |
What do you know? Turned out, there was room!
3. Zobrist or Dick
So if you recall, and you should since it's been bumped to the front page again, the name of the thread is Ricco: It's Zobrist or dick for us this winter Meaning it was John Ricco saying it was Zobrist or dick, not that I thought the offseason would yield Zobrist or dick. And it's hard to argue that my paraphrase was off.
From the Times article:
Ricco sat at the conference table and spoke to the news media for about 20 minutes, outlining what may be an important and busy week here, something of a new phenomenon for the Mets. The Mets’ plans, for the moment, hinge on what Zobrist decides.
If Zobrist signs elsewhere, the Mets did not seem to have a clear fallback plan.
The Mets would like to add complementary players in the bullpen and the outfield. Because they want to play Michael Conforto and Juan Lagares regularly, they are not looking for an “everyday” outfielder, Ricco said, but more of a veteran who could platoon with them.
That definition effectively ruled out the possibility that the Mets would re-sign Cespedes, the outfield slugger who became a fan favorite last year.
“I think it’s unlikely right now that he ends up a Met, I think that’s fair to say,” Ricco said. “I think we will end up meeting with his agent. Right now, I still think he’s looking at a deal that would be north of what we would consider.” |
Basically, the Mets are all in on Zobrist, and they have no real backup plan, and they had no real intention of pursuing an impact player.
I don't know that there was any speculation offered here. It was more along the lines of: "Holy crap, I can't believe Ricco would just show his hand like that" and "The fucking Mets are assholes". Maybe some thought that he was not conveying what he was really thinking, or that he had more up his sleeve. But in the end, turned out he didn't. Basically everything he said was basically all he had.
When Zobrist spurned them, they had no backup plan. From the Andy Martino Report following the Winter Meetings:
| Ricco does not have the luxury to wallow, or reflect; he has to communicate to an entire fan base...“He has some history with the manager in Chicago, it’s a little closer to home for him,” Ricco says of Zobrist, before pausing and conceding the emotional truth of a moment like this. “It’s disappointing, to be honest.” A few minutes later, most of the Mets’ front office staff has returned to the suite. A “what now?” vibe settles over them. “Hey,” says Ricciardi, a streetwise former infielder with a thick Massachusetts accent. “Let’s just get some dinner.” |
They didn't have a Plan B. They didn't immediately turn to the other options they had lined up. They looked at each other sadly, then got something to eat.
It wasn't until the next morning when Huntington called and offered Walker for Niese that the Mets actually saw an option materialize before them. And as we saw after the winter played out, they never pursued Cespedes, or any other impact player. They didn't host his wife and daughter, they didn't take Yoenis on a tour of the NY area. In fact, they actually signed his low-budget replacement, the much maligned Alejandro De Aza, who became the aforementioned veteran who could platoon with the existing guys.
The Mets did not "wait out" Cespedes thinking that the market wouldn't materialize. They wrote him off in November, then were surprised when he came back to them in January.
Again, the thinking was pretty much right on the nose.
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