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June 21, 2016 Mets 2016 Games Dan Capwell

Granderson for Beltran?

All of this Jose Reyes talk/speculation/click bait has gotten me to thinking: if the Mets are seriously considering bringing back stars from the Omar Minaya era, why don’t they inquire about Carlos Beltran?

If any player symbolized the failed Minaya era better than Beltran, it isn’t apparent to me. He slashed 280/369/500 in his seven years here–near elite numbers, even for that steriod-assisted era. He slugged 149 homers and stole 100 bases. He won three Gold Gloves, two Silver Sluggers and was a 5-time All Star. Despite this impressive resume, he never quite got the big prize and his Met career will always have an asterisk next to it because of The At Bat. However in typing those stats, I realized that he never really quite got the appreciation he probably deserved around here.

I get it that Met-Yankee trades are about as rare as late April snow in Pennsylvania, but I propose that the Mets trade Curtis Granderson to the Yanks for Beltran. Before you scoff and click somewhere else, bear this in mind: the Mets will not trade any of their young pitchers for a bat, unless said bat is a near lock to be an offensive mainstay for the next several seasons. Instead, they will look to rinse and repeat deals like this, rent-a-bats that they hope they could catch lightening in a bottle with the way they did last year with Yoenis Cespedes.

The Beltran and Granderson 2016 contracts are essentially a wash, but the Mets would have to come up with some creative way of assisting the Yanks with Curtis’ 2017 salary. Grandy returns to the stadium where he twice hit 40+ homers, while Beltran becomes the Mets 4th outfielder, a sort of roving left fielder/right fielder.

This move gets Juan Lagares back into center field and frees up right for Beltran, Michael Conforto, Brandon Nimmo or any other hot bat, either here or in Vegas. Maybe the Mets also add Reyes as well, giving them a bench that on paper at least has speed and power, two commodities they will need if they plan to reel in the Nationals.

So what do you think? Bring back Jose? Get Beltran? Got another idea? Sound off below.

A Mets fan since 1971, Dan spent many summer nights of his childhood watching the Mets on WOR Channel Nine, which his Allentown, PA cable company carried. Dan was present at Game 7 of the 1986 World Series and the Todd Pratt Walkoff Game in 1999. He is also the proud owner of two Shea Stadium seats. Professionally, Dan is a Marketing Manager in the Bulk Materials Handling industry. He lives in Bethlehem PA with his wife and son, neither of whom fully get his obsession with the Mets.
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  1. Andy June 22, 2016 at 12:18 pm
    I wouldn’t mind if the Mets were to get Beltran back, and I agree that he was underappreciated in NY. But I don’t think your proposed deal is worth it. Granderson was great last year, and I think he could bounce back in the second half. I’d be okay trading Granderson for valuable younger talent, but I don’t think there’s any team that will give that up for him.
  2. DanB June 22, 2016 at 4:21 pm
    Yankees would want prospects.
  3. argonbunnies June 22, 2016 at 6:18 pm
    If Lagares were healthy, I’d be game to sacrifice Granderson’s HRs out of the leadoff spot in exchange for improved defense at multiple OF positions. Beltran is not a viable return, though, because he can’t play the field anymore, and we’d be getting him at the exact wrong time (he’s raked in the first half and collapsed in the second in each of his healthy years since leaving the Mets).

    I can think of guys I might want for Granderson, like Danny Valencia, but I’m having trouble thinking of other teams who’d want Curtis all that much. A contender with a huge hole in a corner OF spot would make the most sense. Maybe the Giants? Astros? I could see Granderson for Luis Valbuena. I think Granderson’s a better player, but Valbuena can play a position where the Mets are currently floundering (3B).

    The Mets don’t have one horrible black hole, they have, like, five semi black holes. Cespedes and Walker have really been the only position players who clearly deserve an everyday spot on a contender. Fixing the team is largely about deciding who to give up on. Flores? Loney + eventual Duda? Conforto? D’Arnaud/Rivera/Plawecki? Granderson?

    Which of those guys is most likely to bounce back? Granderson, because he was great last year? Conforto, because the wrist will heal? Flores, because he’s young and was a hyped prospect? Loney, because the Mets need a contact hitter in their K-filled lineup?

    I don’t envy Alderson this one. I don’t think this team is going anywhere unless several guys already in the organization heal/improve. I wouldn’t give up much to get incremental improvements; just be on the lookout for other teams’ salary dumps.

  4. DaveSchneck June 22, 2016 at 10:52 pm
    I agree with all three comments above…not much more to ad there.

    Regarding Jose, from exclusively a baseball standpoint, and he is released and available for MLB minimum, this is really a no risk move. Yes, at 33, we know he is not the player he was 8 years ago. But, if ever there was a time and a place for a motivated former star to shine once again, this is it. Of course, the off the field issues matter and matter a lot, and that aspect needs to be vetted thoroughly to be comfortable that it has been addressed as best as possible and that the risk of recurrence is minimal.

    • Andy June 23, 2016 at 2:26 am
      The baseball question regarding Reyes is whether, right now, he is better than the Mets current worst bench piece is, right now. So if he’d be an improvement over Matt Reynolds it Ty Kelly and can be had for the MLB minimum then adding Reyes would be a good move.

      As for the off-the-field issues, he has served his suspension. I don’t think hiring him would be an endorsement of what he did.

      • argonbunnies June 23, 2016 at 1:29 pm
        Yeah, I think that’s the question: would Reyes be a significant upgrade over Ty Kelly?

        I don’t know. I suspect Reyes has more talent than Kelly, but being a bench player is hard, and I don’t know if Reyes has the temperament to make the most of it.

        Also, I doubt the Mets have the clarity of vision to tell Jose what his role would be. It’ll be a big bag of “we don’t know, it depends” and he’ll get his hopes up to play every day, and will be disappointed when he doesn’t.

        Over his last 150 games with the Blue Jays, playing in their hitters’ paradise, Jose had one triple and six homers. And only 31 walks. Doesn’t sound like a big asset to me.

        I doubt “a little better than Ty Kelly” is worth the drama. If Sandy rolls the dice, I wouldn’t be upset, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up either.

  5. Gregg from Hoboken June 23, 2016 at 7:25 am
    If the Mets had need of a DH, sure. Beltran’s defensive WAR scores for the past 4 seasons are -1.5, -1.5, -2.0, and a -1.4 (based on only his 48 games in the field this year). He can’t do it any longer.
  6. Vilos June 23, 2016 at 8:41 am
    Granderson and Beltran signed contracts on the same year for similar valué. Beltran made sense to the Yanks because he could alternate between dh and field. This is still true, more so now, so it still doesnt make sense for the Mets. Plus, I agree that second half stats could easily flip.

    I dont get why the Rockies let Reyes go. They have to pay him anyways, dont they? For any team, Reyes is a great utility player or am I missing something?

    Agree with Argón. A run from the Mets has to come from within or from salary dumps. It could happen though.