My Thoughts on Mets’ Acquisition of Marcus Stroman

(Editor’s Note: I was planning on taking the week off from blogging but I got the news about the trade and that scrapped my plan. So I write this somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean on my way to the Bahamas). 

The New York Mets surprised all of baseball by acquiring Toronto Blue Jays ace Marcus Stroman on Sunday evening.

The deal comes with the July 31 trade deadline looming and many of the top World Series contending teams looking to acquire front-of-the-rotation pitchers. The Mets–who have an 11.2 percent chance of making the postseason–are not one of those contenders.

While there is something to be said about a GM unafraid to pull the trigger on a deal, Mets’ GM Brodie Van Wagenen‘s credibility with the fanbase is all but depleted after the ill-fated Robinson Cano deal. This now means he has traded away three former first-round picks (Anthony Kay, Justin Dunn, Jarred Kelenic). This is not the most efficient way to run a baseball team in 2019. First round picks represent a team’s best option to have impact players below market value.

Let’s jump into the Stroman trade more:

Marcus Stroman is without a doubt a proven Major League pitcher. He is arguably Long Island’s best homegrown baseball player since Carl Yastrzemski. Stroman was named to the 2019 All-Star Game, he led Team USA to their only Gold Medal in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, he was a critical piece in the Blue Jays’ ALCS appearance in 2015 (after tearing his ACL only six months prior) and he was a first-round pick out of Duke University in 2012. The Mets–of course–decided to pass over the homegrown pitcher in favor of Gavin Cecchini, who is hitting .250 in Double-A Binghamton.

At 28-years-old and under team control until the end of 2020, he is an asset for any contending team considering his track record of 789 innings in the AL East, including 30.2 innings of postseason experience. Stroman is also an exceptional athlete, having been a three-sport star at Patchogue-Medford HS before graduating in 2009. Unlike most American League pitchers, he is the rare pitcher that can handle the bat, can run the bases and fields his position well. He set a Pat-Med record with 30 stolen bases during his junior season in 2008 when he was the recipient of the Carl Yastrzemski Award.

As far as his mental makeup, he is certainly tough enough to handle New York, he embraces the spotlight and has also grown his personal brand on the side. He owns HDMH clothing line, which will likely flourish in New York and he also has shown an interest in record music as he has appeared on three songs with hip-hop artist Mike Stud (These Days, Shine, Take it How You Wanna).

From this perspective, the move will likely benefit Stroman’s Q rating among New Yorkers. He is also a huge Knicks fan, so you can count on seeing him at MSG plenty of times during January and February. He tweeted several times during the Carmelo Anthony era about his season tickets.

How will he co-exist with Noah Syndergaard given the players were both in the Blue Jays farm system and Toronto chose to keep Stroman rather than the 6’6″ Syndergaard? Will the Mets even keep Syndergaard?

I believe that the Mets would be foolish to trade Syndergaard.

If they want this move to be perceived as an attempt to win-now and build a stronger team in 2019 and 2020 they should keep him and build the rotation around Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, Noah Syndergaard, Steven Matz while extending Zack Wheeler after the season. That’s a talented five-man unit and one that features two Long Island pitchers. They could’ve had another if they retained Kay but that’s another issue. If they trade him, they’re essentially just saying they are tired of Syndergaard’s bravado and swapping him for a player that’s a year older, one year less of control and inferior strikeout numbers.

As for the Mets next move, they should certainly try to get some value for Jason Vargas, who is rendered useless if he’s not a starting pitcher. They should also see what they can get for aging Todd Frazier, who should represent a veteran right-handed power bat off the bench for an American League contender. But, with an upgraded starting pitching, they should make the move to acquire a bullpen arm to try and bridge the gap and make a run at the Wild Card