Eric Orze
Seemingly since taking over as the president of baseball operations for the New York Mets. David Stearns has heavily pursued Luis Robert Jr. It’s a bit of an overstatement, but Stearns did pursue Robert for multiple years and deadlines before landing him.
The fascination has been rather odd.
In 2024, Robert had an injury prone year. He had a 1.3 WAR and an 84 wRC+. Now, you may want to attribute that to an off injury plagued year.
That’s fair, but then, he essentially repeated the year. In 2025, he had an injury plagued year with a 1.4 WAR and an 84 wRC+.
In his hubris, Stearns thought the Mets could revive Robert’s career. He looked like a genius when Robert hit .308/.460/.462 over the first two weeks while showing much improved plate discipline.
Since then, well, he’s been Robert. Over his next 12 games, he’s hitting .152./188/.217 bringing his season mark to .224/.327/.328. Right now, he’s at a 94 wRC+, and we can assumed he will remain below the 100 mark the rest of the year.
Now, you can live with that in exchange for elite defense. While Robert has been good, we can’t quite say he’s been elite in center. Certainly, his throws haven’t been.
In reality, Robert hasn’t been elite in center for years. In 2023, he was the second best center fielder with a 12 OAA. He hasn’t been that again.
Since 2024, Robert has a 8 OAA. That ranks him as 22nd overall in baseball. There are 30 teams in baseball. These are not elite numbers.
Notably, Harrison Bader ranks higher than Robert. Bader has a 13 OAA in the same time frame. In that time frame, he also has a 98 wRC+.
This makes Bader the better player. It must be why he’s had a 4.5 WAR since 2024 while Robert has had a 2.9. Taking everything into account, it gets worse.
Bader was productive for the Mets in 2024 for a $10.5 million. Instead of re-signing him, Stearns thought he could do better by trading for Jose Siri, who was hurt and bad. He’s now playing for the Los Angeles Angels Triple-A team.
For Siri, the Mets gave up Eric Orze. Orze has been an effective reliever the past two years in his limited MLB time. That’s notable for a Mets team struggling to put together bullpens in Stearns’ tenure.
For Robert, the Mets gave up Luisangel Acuña. Being fair, Acuña hasn’t been bad for the Chicago White Sox. That said, Francisco Lindor is hurt, and the Mets don’t have a real shortstop option.
Moreover, the Mets are paying Robert $20 million. After the year, they either pick up his $20 million option or give him a $2 million buyout.
Since leaving the Mets, Bader has made $15 million. Put another way, Bader has made $5 million less over two years and haz been the better player.
Stearns gave up assets and had Steve Cohen pay $20 million to get worse at the position. This was done in the name of defense and the belief the Mets can make players something they’re not offensively.
Stearns made the Mets worse in center field. He gave up prospects, and the Mets are paying $20 million to be worse.
Bader was not a long term solution. He was a part time player. It behooved Stearns to improve and find a long term solution. Fact is, he hasn’t.
Instead, Stearns chased Robert. It was an unnecessary pursuit. Hopefully, it won’t prove to be a blunder.
Whatever the case, Stearns wasted resources trying to improve from Bader. He’s failed miserably and compounded it by wasting money and prospects. As Mets fans know, we could be talking about Robert or any number of Stearns’ decisions.
Well, it looks like Harrison Bader will not be returning to the New York Mets because the Mets obtained Jose Siri from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for Eric Orze.
Siri, 29, is a year younger than Bader and essentially does the same exact thing Bader did last year.
In 2024, Siri had a 16 OAA to Bader’s 10. Over the past three years, Siri leads in OAA 16 to 14.
Siri is one of the fastest players in baseball with a sprint speed of 29.9 ft/sec. Bader was also quick, but he was at a 28.2. It’s one of the reasons Bader was a -1 Runner Run last year to Siri’s 2.
Where Bader is better is hitting. Last year, Bader was an 85 wRC+ and has a 90 wRC+ for his career. Siri had a 70 wRC+ and an 89 for his career.
Against left-handed pitchers, Bader had a 70 wRC+ against lefties and for his career it’s a 109. Siri had a 92 wRC+ against lefties last year and has a 76 for his career.
Siri rarely walks and strikes out far too often. He does have a good barrel rate, but his exit velocities are low. If you get the right hitting coach, maybe you could unlock something, but it’s highly unlikely.
In reality, Siri is nothing more than a defensive specialist. That’s all the Mets need from their fifth outfielder making him a much better fit for the role than Bader would be.
That’s no slight on Bader who was a great fit for the Mets last year. It’s just that Siri will be a better fit for a team looking to sign Juan Soto while also having Jett Williams and Ryan Clifford on the horizon.
Siri was just the better fit for a defensive replacement and specialist. Bader is probably better, but Siri fits the role better. Getting him for a reliever the Mets won’t use just makes this a smart move.