The 2023 Mets had been by no means imagined to be a Cinderella story. With a traditionally excessive payroll and a number of the greatest expertise within the massive leagues on the roster, the Amazins’ had been scrappy underdogs not.
And but, the clock struck midnight on the Mets on Thursday evening.
Right-handed reliever David Robertson was traded to the Miami Marlins in the course of the ninth inning of the Mets’ 2-1 win over the Washington Nationals at Citi Field. The return was two minor leaguers, infielder Marco Vargas and a catcher named Ronald Hernandez. This successfully signaled the membership’s plans for the Tuesday commerce deadline: To promote expertise and acquire future property.
“We were faced with where our club was at this time of the season,” mentioned Mets normal supervisor Billy Eppler. “We’ve had a number of inquiries on our players and we were listening. In this circumstance, the value of the players that we acquired kind of exceeded our expectations. So we executed it.”
The Mets are at the moment seven video games out of an NL Wild Card playoff spot with solely 5 days left till the commerce deadline. Eppler selected his phrases fastidiously and didn’t explicitly say the membership is open for enterprise, but when the GM was going to method this slowly then he probably wouldn’t have traded away the staff’s most essential bullpen piece, particularly since Robertson made recognized his want to remain in Queens.
Robertson not too long ago informed the Daily News that he hoped to stay with the Mets all through the remainder of the season, however the 38-year-old veteran knew that may have required a magical run that by no means occurred. At 4-2 with a 2.05 ERA and 14 saves in 17 alternatives, he was the membership’s greatest commerce piece. Robertson, who signed a one-year contract with the Mets in December, stepped in because the staff’s nearer when Edwin Diaz was injured in the course of the World Baseball Classic in March.
“I figured I would be moved, but I just really didn’t have any idea where,” Robertson mentioned. “It was kind of a shock, but it’s part of this game.”
The Mets have been in a state of limbo for the reason that All-Star break. A six-game profitable streak to begin the month of July gave the group hope they may flip the season round, however then they misplaced their remaining two video games earlier than the break and the primary two after it. They by no means gained sufficient floor.
Eppler couldn’t wait for much longer when he obtained a suggestion he felt was greater than satisfactory from a division rival.
“Our farm system has got a way to go,” Eppler mentioned. “We’ve had some drafts that, I think, a lot of people feel good with. But we have to continue to add. If we’re going to go where we want to go in the long-term, we’re going to need an upper-tiered farm system to get there.”
Robertson is glad the GM didn’t wait.
“This has not been the funnest part of the year, that’s for sure,” the previous Yankees reliever mentioned. “When you come in here and everybody is asking where you’re going and what are your thoughts, it’s a lot to deal with when you still have to go out there and compete knowing you might not be on the team for very long.”
This state of affairs appeared unfathomable final winter. It appeared extremely unlikely when the season started. So to say that it’s a disappointment is an understatement. The expectations had been as excessive because the payroll and a proficient staff didn’t ship.
When they pitch nicely, they’ll’t hit. When they hit, they’ll’t pitch. They play dazzling protection some nights and so they look defenseless on others. No one has been ready to determine why a roster filled with winners can’t appear to win persistently.
“We had a big injury to Edwin this year, which probably cost us 6-7 games and that would have put us right in the thick of it,” Robertson mentioned. “Can’t do anything about that. It was an accident and they happen. But we still had the guys to get it done. We just weren’t able to put it together. I don’t know what it was.”
Now that the inconceivable has turned possible, the Mets will look to commerce left-hander Brooks Raley and outfielders Tommy Pham and Mark Canha. Time will inform whether or not or not the Mets or the Marlins received this commerce since Vargas, 18, and Hernandez, 19, are nonetheless youngsters enjoying within the Florida Complex League. Their careers have solely began.
But the 2023 Mets? They’re nearly completed.
“It’s not where we want to be,” Eppler mentioned. “It’s not what we want to be doing. We’re trying to balance the best interest in the team and we also have to balance the best interest of the organization. Sometimes, those are more perpendicular than they are parallel.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com