Go Get Manny Machado

There was speculation in the Boston Globe yesterday, the Baltimore Orioles might be looking to move SS/3B Manny Machado this offseason, and one of the teams involved in bidding for Machado could be the New York Mets.  If there is something to this speculation, the Mets should do all they can do to go out there and get Machado.

The problem with swinging a deal is the Mets do not have the prospects to swing such a deal.  As a result, if a deal is going to take place, the Mets are going to have to trade some of their major league players for Machado.

As an aside, I typically hate fan generated trade proposals.  As a result, I attempt to address existing rumors rather than attempt to create some on your own.  With the possibility of Machado being available, I’m breaking my own personal rule.

For starters, we should presume that the Mets would make Noah Syndergaard untouchable.  He’s still under cost-control, and he’s a bona fide ace.  With all the other Mets starters being injured to injury prone and the Orioles extremely strict medical review process, it’s highly doubtful the Orioles take back Steven Matz or Matt Harvey in a deal – at least as the major part of the trade.

If there is going to be a pitcher traded, and you’re likely going to have to trade one, it is Jacob deGrom.  Now, you’d hate to lose deGrom.  He’s been the one healthy pitcher this year, and he has been one of the best pitchers in all of baseball since he was the Rookie of the Year in 2014.  The Mets also have control over deGrom until 2020.

On the flip side, deGrom will be 30 next season.  While he has had a healthy season a year after his nerve transposition surgery last year, he has taken a step back.  He’s had an uneven season this year going 14-9 with a 3.65 ERA, 1.212 WHIP, and a 10.4 K/9.

Taking all that into account, the Orioles would likely be interested in deGrom, but they would need more.  Considering the amount of teams interested, the Mets are going to have to give up a piece that hurts.  Likely, that piece would have to be Amed Rosario.

In a short time span, there is a lot to like with Rosario.  He’s been dynamic in the field with the glove and with his speed.  We have seen why he was considered to be one of if not one of the top prospects in all of baseball.  He’s a player you’d consider to be absolutely untouchable.

But this is Manny Machado we’re talking about here.

Machado is one of the top players in baseball, and he’s just 24 years old.  He’s a great hitter and a great fielder.  Even in a down year fueled by a .274 BABIP, he’s still a 4.4 WAR player.  That would make him the best player on the Mets this season.

It would be a daring move, but it is one that could transform this franchise much in the way the Mets obtaining Mike Piazza did in 2017.  This isn’t hyperbole either.  Machado is a Hall of Fame talent and a real difference maker.

Like with Piazza in 1998, it’s a gamble because you’re not guaranteed anything past next year.  It’s a bigger gamble when you consider what deGrom is and what Rosario could be.

Part of the gamble could be alleviated by signing either Yu Darvish or Jake Arrieta this offseason to replace deGrom.  If you can do that, there is no doubt that a team with Darvish and Machado is better than a team with deGrom and Rosario.  If you can get Machado to sign an extension, this trade becomes all the more enticing.

If the Mets really want to compete for a World Series next year, this is the deal you make.

The chances of such a deal taking place is not likely.  First, the Orioles are a notoriously difficult trading partner.  Second, you’re convincing Machado to give up on testing the free agent waters.  Lastly, and perhaps the biggest obstacle, you’re asking the Mets to spend at a time when they are looking to cut payroll.

So overall, while this MIGHT be the framework for a reasonable deal between the two sides, it is really unlikely we will ever see Machado in a Mets uniform.

Personally, I would do the deal, especially if you can get Machado to sign an extension.  However, in what isn’t the first time, it seems many Mets fans disagree with me:

page top