Q.O. for Walker

[Frayed Knot]

QO info is rolling in but nothing from the Mets as of yet
Of those either likely to get, or who might possibly receive, offers:

PLAYER	TEAM	OFFERED
DEXTER FOWLER	CUBS	YES
KENLEY JANSEN	DODGERS	YES
JUSTIN TURNER	DODGERS	YES
MATT WIETERS	ORIOLES	NO
YOENIS CESPEDES	METS	???
NEIL WALKER	METS	???
JEREMY HELLICKSON	PHILLIES	YES
EDWIN ENCARNACION	BLUE JAYS	YES
JOSE BAUTISTA	BLUE JAYS	YES
IAN DESMOND	RANGERS	YES
WILSON RAMOS	NATIONALS	???
MARK TRUMBO	ORIOLES	???
JASON CASTRO	ASTROS	???
BARTOLO COLON	METS	???
DOUG FISTER	ASTROS	???
KENDRYS MORALES	ROYALS	???
MICH MORELAND	RANGERS	???
BRANDON MOSS	CARDINAL	???
MIKE NAPOLI	INDIANS	NO
MICHAEL SAUNDERS	BLUE JAYS	NO
LUIS VALBUENA	ASTROS	???

[Benjamin Grimm]

So the Orioles announced a decision on Wieters but not Trumbo?

[Centerfield]

Napoli is a little surprising. 34 HR's, 800 OPS. You'd think he'd get a multiple year deal someplace.

Maybe the Tribe can't take the risk that he would accept.

[Lefty Specialist]

He's coming off back surgery. I'd be afraid he'd take the offer, given that teams might be leery of signing him. They have in-house options. The 'free draft pick' has to be weighed against 'what if he accepts?'

[Centerfield]

Lefty Specialist wrote: He's coming off back surgery. I'd be afraid he'd take the offer, given that teams might be leery of signing him. They have in-house options. The 'free draft pick' has to be weighed against 'what if he accepts?'

That I didn't know.

I also just looked him up and realized he's 35 years old. Somehow Mike Napoli has played his whole career without me noticing him until like 3 years ago.

[Lefty Specialist]

Sorry, jumped into the thread late- I was talking about Walker, not Napoli.

[Chad ochoseis]

Centerfield wrote: Napoli is a little surprising. 34 HR's, 800 OPS. You'd think he'd get a multiple year deal someplace. Maybe the Tribe can't take the risk that he would accept.

Not all that good in a small ballpark. Park-adjusted, the OPS+ was only 104, which is weak for an iffy-fielding 1B on the downside of his career. And the Indians have Carlos Santana, who has a 2017 team option for $12M and is basically a switch-hitting version of Napoli in his prime. And, small sample size, but Napoli was awful in the post-season. I don't see anyone taking on Napoli for more than the QO.

Indians also letting Rajai Davis go, which is less of a surprise.

[seawolf17]

Wieters?!? Wow. Tough to be a former catching wunderkind.

[Frayed Knot]

seawolf17 wrote: Wieters?!? Wow. Tough to be a former catching wunderkind.

Weiters was one of the three guys who accepted QOs last year rather than go directly to FA-gency, betting on himself in a way, but then didn't have a particularly good year: .243/.302/.409 which, when park adjusted, comes out to a OPS+ of 87 even if his 117 games played was more than the previous two seasons combined.

But, yeah, he'll be 31 in the spring and is certainly past that whole 'Piazza with the bat and Mauer with the glove' label that got put on him back in his prospect days.
Not sure what his defense is like these days but I don't know that history is all that kind to the aging of large catchers (6' 5" / 230)

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Mets extend QO for both guys. Rooting against Walker accepting.

[Centerfield]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Mets extend QO for both guys. Rooting against Walker accepting.

I'm torn on this. Like you, I kinda feel like Walker will regress a bit next year. But I'm also scared that none of our options would produce.

Also creeping me out is that I was rooting for Murphy to decline last year, and now, I wish for all the world he had accepted. Incidentally, I bet he wishes he did too. Imagine the payday he'd get this year.

[seawolf17]

Centerfield wrote: John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Mets extend QO for both guys. Rooting against Walker accepting. I'm torn on this. Like you, I kinda feel like Walker will regress a bit next year. But I'm also scared that none of our options would produce. Also creeping me out is that I was rooting for Murphy to decline last year, and now, I wish for all the world he had accepted. Incidentally, I bet he wishes he did too. Imagine the payday he'd get this year.

Considering he'd be coming off a world championship if he'd accepted? BIG bucks.

[Frayed Knot]

I feel 2B is the easiest spot to cover with our existing personnel (Flores, TJ Rivera, Reynolds, Cecchini, etc.) so that the fall-off shouldn't be too bad and it'll be covered for about $16 million less than if he accepts which hopefully then will be put to good use elsewhere.

[Frayed Knot]

PLAYER	TEAM	OFFERED
DEXTER FOWLER	CUBS	YES
KENLEY JANSEN	DODGERS	YES
JUSTIN TURNER	DODGERS	YES
MATT WIETERS	ORIOLES	NO
YOENIS CESPEDES	METS	YES
NEIL WALKER	METS	YES
JEREMY HELLICKSON	PHILLIES	YES
EDWIN ENCARNACION	BLUE JAYS	YES
JOSE BAUTISTA	BLUE JAYS	YES
IAN DESMOND	RANGERS	YES
WILSON RAMOS	NATIONALS	NO
MARK TRUMBO	ORIOLES	YES
JASON CASTRO	ASTROS	???
BARTOLO COLON	METS	???
DOUG FISTER	ASTROS	???
KENDRYS MORALES	ROYALS	???
MItCH MORELAND	RANGERS	???
BRANDON MOSS	CARDINAL	???
MIKE NAPOLI	INDIANS	NO
MICHAEL SAUNDERS	BLUE JAYS	NO
LUIS VALBUENA	ASTROS	???
EDINSON VOLQUEZ	ROYALS	NO

[Frayed Knot]

There will be TEN players this winter with Qualifying Offers attached to their Free Agency, down from a record 20 last year.

DEXTER FOWLER
KENSLEY JANSEN
JUSTIN TURNER
YOENIS CESPEDES
NEIL WALKER
JEREMY HELLICKSON
EDWIN ENCARNACION
JOSE BAUTISTA
IAN DESMOND
MARK TRUMBO

[Edgy MD]

Poor Ian Desmond. He can't escape.

[Centerfield]

He's about to become Rich Ian Desmond.

[Frayed Knot]

Centerfield wrote: He's about to become Rich Ian Desmond.

That's what he thought last year too.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Kevin Davidoff, in the Post, thinks that Walker may return to the Mets:

I’m wondering whether his situation might be resolved by next Monday, the deadline to accept the qualifying offer. Remember, last offseason featured massive movement of second basemen. Most competing clubs have second base resolved. How many teams will be willing to sacrifice a draft pick to sign Walker, who will be coming off back surgery? I’m betting not many. I think Walker and the Mets, who really enjoyed each other, might be able to knock out a multi-year deal by Monday to save him what would be a high-risk free agency.

[ashie62]

Saw that Walker may take the QO or better.

What I don't quite get is he could have played through his injury during the critical final month for the Mets. He chose to have surgery right away as if to project his brand as an FA rather than helping the team.

[Zvon]

Ashie62 wrote: What I don't quite get is he could have played through his injury during the critical final month for the Mets. He chose to have surgery right away as if to project his brand as an FA rather than helping the team.

I agree with this. Which is to say I didn't get it.

Is he one of the players who's wife had a child during the season?

[Centerfield]

I think the doctors told him if he played it could get worse.

Worsening a back injury going into your walk year would be a no-brainer for me.

[ashie62]

I guess walk year surgery over pennant race pain would be done by just about every player nowadays.

I didn't know it could have gotten worse quickly. I need to give Neil a pass.

[Frayed Knot]

Today at 5PM (EST) is QO deadline time; players who have been offered the $17.2 mil QO have until that time to accept or reject.
It doesn't appear that the Mets & Walker have had any substantive contract discussions concerning a longer deal so, for right now anyway, Walker has a substantial all or nothing choice to make.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I'm really not sure which way I'm rooting. Sure, I'd be glad to have him back for one more year, but I really don't have a sense of how much that $17 million commitment would affect other potential moves.

[Centerfield]

Same here.

I wonder which way the Mets are rooting. I am trying to read into the fact that there have been no real substantive talks. I guess the simple read is that they don't want him back at all.

But if you really didn't want him back, I wonder if you leak a bullshit offer (2 years, 24 million) and spur others to come in and move quickly, making it less likely that that he takes the QO.

I kinda got the feeling that the Mets would only seriously consider bringing back Neil if they lost Cespedes.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I guess if he accepts and they don't in fact want him, he can be traded. Or is there some clause that prevents that until June, or something like that?

[Frayed Knot]

From back on Page two of this thread:

If a player takes qualifying offer he cannot be traded (without his consent) until June 15 of the following season, and that even if a player grants such consent, only $50K in cash can be exchanged as part of the trade.

[Edgy MD]

The Mets have a lot of options at second, but if he takes the offer, some of those options become trading chips. But yeah, it's hard to move those players around in a way that makes up for the fact that your budget is suddenly $17 million lighter.

A team probably shouldn't make the offer unless they're prepared to go either way.

[Centerfield]

I guess another interpretation could be that they really want him to take the QO. And they would undermine it by offering a multi-year deal.

I don't know. I don't really see him taking it. But if last week told us anything, it's that we have no fucking idea what will happen. Ever.