With the news last night that George Springer and the Blue Jays had reached an agreement on a six-year, $ 150 million deal, the 31-year-old who had been one of the Mets’ targets in this off season officially goes to another place. The Mets have improved dramatically since the off-season began, largely because they switched to one of the best baseball players, Francisco Lindor.
In the short term, however, failing to get Springer – which Mets would have offered in the range of $ 120-125 million over six years – means that Mets is not meeting its needs in the central field with the best possible option. Springer had already spent more time in the center right field during his career, but the Astros used him as their main central defender last year, when he recorded the vast majority of his defensive entries there. At some point during the next six years, he will probably spend less time in the center and more on the right, but he would have been playable in the center on a daily basis – something that cannot be said about Michael Comfort or Brandon Nimmo.
Speaking of Comfort and Nimmo, the former is eligible for free agency after the 2021 season, while the latter has another year of eligibility for arbitration in 2022 before he is also eligible to become a free agent. Whether they maintain one or both outfielders for the long term, however, the need in the central field is now clear. In addition to the defensive issues posed when playing Nimmo or Comfort in the center every day, the Mets would have JD Davis, Dominic Smith or the recent addition Jose Martinez on the left field beside them, creating a major defensive problem in two thirds of the outside field. This brings us to the central field of options for staying in a free agency.
Among the free agents listed as central defenders in MLB Trade Rumors, longtime Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner has led the pack since the start of the 2019 season with 4.2 fWAR thanks to an above average bat. In 708 plate appearances during that period, he hit 0.245 / .322 / .480 with 33 home runs, 13 stolen bases and 114 wRC +. Like any left-handed Yankees hitter, it certainly didn’t hurt to play half his game in a stadium with an incredibly short porch on the right field. And although the 37-year-old has experience at the center, the Yankees have used him much more often on the left field throughout his career.
Jack Bradley Jr. ranks second in that group with 2.8 fWAR since the start of the 2019 season, and he is the player who will receive the most attention among Mets fans and writers covering the team. While Gardner has midfield experience, Bradley is undoubtedly a central defender now, having played almost exclusively in his major league career with little time in each corner. By wRC +, he was only above average as a hitter in three seasons of his career, one of which was the shortened campaign of 2020. And since the beginning of the 2019 season, he has reached 0.241 / 0.330 / 0.429 with 28 home runs, 13 stolen bases and 98 WRC +. He turned 31 in April and there should be no doubt that he can play a pivot – and well – in the near future.
From there, it’s Kevin Pillar, who reached 0.266 / 0.300 / 0.440 in the same period, with 27 home runs, 19 stolen bases, a 90 wRC + and 2.5 fWAR. The Mets overtook Pillar in a free agency last winter, opting to switch to Jake Marisnick, but the 32-year-old right-handed man played mostly on the central court – except for the time he spent with the Red Sox last year playing on the right field with Bradley in the center.
And after Pilar on that list, things become a little less familiar. Brian Goodwin, a 30-year-old left-handed hitter, hit 0.250 / 0.319 / 0.456 with 23 home runs, 12 stolen bases and 105 WRC +. He played pivot for a good part of his major league career, which he spent with the Nationals, Royals, Angels and Reds. Danny Santana, who had a good season as a Rangers starter in 2019, is on the list, but is hardly a daily central defender, having played much more in other positions, including first base.
As for the rest of the group, it starts with Marisnick, who got it right in very, very little playing time with the Mets in 2020, but is still a central defender. Delino DeShields, 28, has only 72 wRC + since the start of the 2019 season, who is certainly a central defender and is capable of stealing bases. The 36-year-old Jarrod Dyson is similar to DeShields when it comes to being able to play in the center and steal bases, but he has been even worse on the board. Billy Hamilton is out there, but he already had a chance with the Mets who saw him being condemned by the DFA for making several mistakes in the grassroots – something that is difficult to justify for a player whose main asset is the basic race.
Albert Almora Jr., who is still just 26 years old and had a solid start in his major league career with the Cubs in 2016 and 2017, before his production dropped significantly in each season that followed, is available. Chicago didn’t trade it at the start of the off-season, and it was worth -0.8 fWAR since the start of the 2019 season. And Jon Jay, who has 58 wRC + since the start of the 2019 season, is the last of the group with -1 , 3 fWAR in that period.
Clearly, there was a huge gap between George Springer and the rest of the free agent market. But even among the players who are still available, there are clear levels. Perhaps the Mets will avoid all these players and make a switch, but if not, it would certainly be better to bring someone to help in the center – preferably one of the good defenders with a history of being a median major hitter in the league.