On Monday, a blockbuster deal was confirmed between the Mariners and Mets that sent veteran second baseman Robinson Canó and phenom reliever Edwin Díaz to the big apple. The Mariners in return will be acquiring top outfield prospect Jarred Kelenic, good right-handed pitching prospect Justin Dunn, right fielder Jay Bruce, right-handed reliever Anthony Swarzak, and right-handed pitcher Gerson Bautista.
This trade for the Mets confirms their stance heading into next season. They want to win now more than ever and instead of making high risk free agent moves, they’re trading for some of the best in the game. While Canó is at a downfall in his career, being 36 years old, he still puts up good numbers, as in the 2018 season he put up a .303 BA, 10 HR, .374 OBP, .471 SLG, and .845 OPS in 348 PA after being partially handicapped by a PED suspension. Díaz is one of the best closers in the game and will significantly help that awful bullpen, putting up a 1.96 ERA, 0.79 WHIP, 124 SO, 17 BB, and a .160 BAA in 73.1 IP.
While the Mets, in my opinion, still aren’t at a contending level just yet, they certainly got closer with this move. They got a consistent .300 hitter in Canó, which really helps their team batting average which was a dreadful .234 last season. Compliment him with emerging hitter Jeff McNeil and solid bats in Michael Conforto and Brandon Nimmo, and you have a deadly 4-punch in the lineup. Díaz, like I said, will significantly help that dreadful bullpen which didn’t really have any bright spots last season. He’s a lights out closer who can help the Mets shut out a game with their deadly rotation.
As for the Mariners, the highlight of this deal in my eyes is definitely Kelenic. While he’s still a raw bat, as he was just drafted out of high school with the 6th overall pick, his upside is tremendous. If he develops he can anchor that future outfield with Mitch Haniger very well. Dunn also is a good pitching piece, as seen by the Mets he has the upside of a future 3 or 4 starter, something the Mariners will need once their rotation is in order in about 3-4 years. Bruce, Swarzak, and Bautista are mediocre pieces, the former 2 will probably be gone in a year or 2 and Bautista hasn’t given the Mets much to work with.
The Mariners have set their goals clear for the future. After not making the playoffs with a deadly roster the last 2 seasons, they have decided to significantly retool the roster to contend for the future, building up a solid farm so far that has Sheffield, Kelenic, and Dunn (in order) as their top 100 prospects. Complimented with draft picks of the future, Seattle should be able to build up a good roster once to juggernauts of the AL have cooled down a bit.
In my opinion, the winner of this trade really can’t be determined for about one to five years. I see the Mets’ window for contention being this next year as the last chance before a rebuild is needed, except if they sign Wheeler or find some way to replace him, so losing Kelenic and Dunn will likely hurt their long term success, although Canó and Díaz help them now, which they see as the most important thing for their team.
Seattle wants to set up the window of contention for 2021 or so, which I see as unlikely considering how much they re-tooled the roster for only 3 top 100’s. They traded Canó, Díaz, Jean Segura, James Pazos, Juan Nicasio, Mike Zunino, etc and managed to only scrape out that haul. I could see them winning in 5 years at the minimum depending on how they draft, but that’s a big if because the Mariners’ draft success hasn’t been so good in the last decade or so. The future of this trade is cloudy, but if both teams play out their ends of the trade well, both teams could mutually benefit.
The MLB Enthusiast 