Can Heyward Play Center?

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

Gwreck wrote: Wow, how strange: National League Team in one of the very largest media markets in the country makes playoffs after five consecutive losing seasons. Plays well, but falls short of championship. Goes out, adds significant players in free agency in order to improve team. Oh, wait. Did I say strange? There's nothing strange about that at all.

It just seems strange to because we're Mets fans.

The Cubs are actively spending money to improve their team and build on the momentum of their recent playoff apperance. They are doing what any raional Mets fan would wish of our front office and ownership.

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

Ceetar wrote: d'Kong76 wrote: Flushing all the pitching down the toilet with no improvements made. They're not going to be Mets forever. I can't believe more people aren't outraged. A. They are better. B. The Nationals are worse. C. Heyward isn't that good. D. There are other players. E. It's December, not April.

Bartender, I'd like a double of whatever Ceetar is drinking.

[Centerfield]

Sounds like RD is a card-carrying member of PAW. Welcome to the club good doctor.

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

I enjoyed the late season surge and the post season run, but I don't have any faith in the Mets ownership to invest in the team to make the improvements necessary for the Mets to build upon the success of last 2015. I have plenty of faith in Alderson's abilities, but I feel he is generally working with one hand fiscally tied behind his back. I just don't have the energy to get as worked up over it as some of our more passionate members.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

In all fairness, it seems that Heyward (like Zobrist is rumored to have done) left money on the table to come to Chicago. Various sources claim both the Cards and Nats offered a significant amount more--$200 or so-- than Chicago did; it likely would have taken more than that to bring him east. They do seem to be taking on Destination Team status pretty quickly.

Checking in would have been nice.

[Vic Sage]

Earlier Vic Sage posted that the Mets needed Zobrist and Heyward. Looks like the Cubs were the only team listening

You didn't have to be Theo Epstein to have looked at this team, looked at the available players, and make that call. Any Tony voter with a keyboard could've typed it (well, maybe not any Tony voter...) -- and i can't believe our solid front-office wouldn't have had that as Plan A, if they had the resources. But they clearly didn't.

The problem, of course, is that now people will focus on Cespedes, his price will go up even more, so we're going to have to vastly overpay for a guy who, despite an amazing 6-week stretch, has NO control of the strike zone, and is over 30 (based on a Cuban birth certificate). He's a free-swinging hacker who's going to age fast, so i could understand why Sandy may not want to have targeted him, but at this point, he's the best option available. His power is legit, his arm and baserunning are excellent, and despite a few bonehead plays in CF, he did pretty well there overall.

I think it'll take at least 6 years (maybe 7) and at least $25m/yr to get him. I would've preferred 8-10 years to a 26-year old Heyward at $20-22m, but that ship has sailed, and the Cubs are sailing it. Now we need Cespedes just to keep pace but i just don't think Sandy sees him as that kind of player, even if he weren't shackled by the Pons.

[Guest d'Kong76]

I don't recall where right now, but there have been a few rumblings
that Cespedes isn't going to get the years originally predicted. He may
be older than advertised, his overall numbers aren't elite, and let's face
it anyone who really watched-watched has to suspect his drive and desire
some nights. We'll see.

[metsmarathon]

It's possible that our plan is to wait out the market and watch cespedes' value tumble until to better suits our interests.

And if that's true and if it works out for us, then it will have been well played.

And if not, it may well be a fucking disaster.