Q and A – Traid Yo

This week’s question to the Mack’s Mets writers comes from Reese Kaplan and is:

If a GM approached you about a deal for Yoenis Cespedes would you ask him to waive his non-trade clause?

            Mack says –

I don’t consider any ballplayer untradeable, unless his contract states that fact.

Cespedes wears his emotion on his sleeve and approaching him could just cause a return to the drama we saw this past season.

I hate contracts with a no-trade clause but a deal is a deal.

What I would do is quietly approach the subject with a handful of GMs that I trusted to keep the reason for the telephone call hush hush. It wouldn’t take a lot of time to research the teams in need of another premier outfielder.

See what they would offer. Explain to that GM that this just might be an exercise in futility but negotiate the deal for the most you could get. If you like the deal, tell the GM you will confidentially approach Cespedes with the deal, but tell him that the process started with a call from the outside team.

It would take an awful lot to make me make this deal, but, yes, I would try under the above conditions.

Gary McDonald says –

           Yes.  You would probably have to wave some money in front of him,  but, I would do it.

Reese Kaplan says –

           There's a reason why Yoenis Cespedes has bounced around between four teams during his first four years in the majors since emigrating from Cuba.  Oakland, Boston and Detroit all tired of his act before Sandy Alderson sent Rookie of the Year Michael Fulmer to Motor City to acquire the enigmatic slugger midway through 2015. 

We all saw what he can do when he's motivated.  He took a team that had virtually no offense and propelled it all the way to the World Series.  Unfortunately, his motivation, his ego and his approach to conditioning have made many already sour on him. 

Considering the money he's being paid, he's an unlikely acquisition target for other clubs.  However, if the Mets were to kick in a substantial amount to bring him down to say $20 million per year for the remainder of the deal, then they would have quite a bit of booty to invest in fortifying the club.  One of the major changes the team needed to make was in its internal culture.  That started with the change in manager, but they backpedaled a bit by bringing back one of the malcontents, Asdrubal Cabrera.  Perhaps parting ways with the other malcontent and bringing in multiple (albeit) lesser talents could generate in aggregate what Cespedes could do on his own for a similar cost.  That comes with the huge caveat that in addition to being motivated he's also not on the DL.  The better clubhouse would be worth the change alone.

Then again, as much as I'd like to lay the blame on the head of the deposed Skipper, Cespedes' track record elsewhere suggests guilt on both parts with perhaps more of it on the player than the manager.  I'd certainly not hang up the phone.  An extra $20 million to spend could mean, for example, a trade for Jose Abreu and a flyer on someone like Evan Gattis who is rumored to be non-tendered.

Tom Brennan says –

              I am keeping Yo unless the offer is just too good to refuse.  I think he will have a big - and healthy - season.  If the deal were THAT good, such as an even-up trade for Stanton, sure I would ask him.  He might like being that much closer to Cuba again.

Jack Flynn says –

            Any professional sports franchise has to do what is in the best interests of team success. Therefore, there is not a single player on the New York Mets who should be considered untouchable. That includes Yoenis Cespedes, who I think is unfairly the subject of wild rumors and rampant speculation. I find this type of speculation irresponsible and distasteful, and I feel it necessary to make clear that my willingness to consider trading Cespedes has nothing to do with that type of noise, and everything to do with the understanding that he is not a perfect fit for this team.

Michael Conforto played center field for the Mets last year in the sense that he stood roughly between the left fielder and the right fielder and tried very hard to catch everything that was hit to him. Conforto is a left fielder by trade, however, and that's where he is the best fit defensively. The Mets have a perfectly acceptable platoon option in center field (Juan Lagares and Brandon Nimmo), but could use a right fielder with a bat and an arm of Cespedes's caliber. Unfortunately, they have Cespedes, who does not want to play right field.

If Sandy Alderson was offered a premium right fielder in exchange for Cespedes, that would have to be something to be considered. If the Mets were offered a premium third baseman or second baseman in exchange for Cespedes, that would be something that would have to be considered as well. If the Mets were offered a premium starting pitcher that would give them the best 1-2-3 starters in the National League, this too would be reason to consider trading Cespedes.

The Mets should not trade Yoenis Cespedes for prospects, not should they trade him to dump salary. The bullpen could stand fortifying, but I don't think I would need all of the fingers on one hand to count the number of relievers I would trade him for. Finally - and perhaps most importantly - the Mets should not trade Yoenis Cespedes "to change the culture in the clubhouse" or some similarly insipid rationale. There is only one factor to consider when changing clubhouse culture, and that is bringing in the best possible players to give a team the best chance at successful outcomes on the field. The more games the Mets win in 2018, the less hand-wringing about clubhouse culture will be observed.

Michael Maar  says -

The Mets have to be willing to turn the page on the disastrous 2017 season in a lot of ways, and not exacerbate their problems by rushing to dump talented players who had frustrating seasons.

 

Setting out to trade someone like Cespedes sounds like an easy way to correct last year's problems, however the first concern is always getting back equivalent talent - that's a topic unto itself.  But even assuming an opposing GM offered an acceptable deal, asking Cespedes to waive his no-trade does present risks.  If he loves NY and decided to veto any trade, would he be so hurt and offended that it would set the team up to start 2018 with a negative environment for their new manager to deal with?

Cespedes made a poor training choice in over-building his legs last Winter, which really put him on a downward spiral physically.  Add to that what the Mets clearly knew about him when they signed him - that he's quirky and marches to his own drummer.  But it's also clear that he's immensely talented, and that when he's happy and healthy he can he a huge force in the middle of a lineup.  I think there's a very good chance that given the right leadership from Mickey Callaway - which is what they were looking for in choosing him - that there's a good chance of finding the superstar in Yoenis Cespedes again.