Buster Olney Discusses David Wright’s Future With the New York Mets

Published: 21^st Jan 12 1:11 pm

Craig Williams
craigwilliams

2 Rants

Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE

David Wright and my desire for the New York Mets to trade him is a topic that I have discussed on several occasions since July. I don’t think the New York Mets will be ready to contend before David Wright is an unquestioned free agent (the New York Mets hold a $16 million option for 2013) so it seems pointless – from a performance standpoint – to keep him around. Buster Olney (insider required) lists a few options that the New York Mets have regarding their star third baseman:

Extend him beyond the 2013 season.
Keep him through 2013 and then re-evaluate the situation.
Trade between now and the 2013 trade deadline.

Olney guesses that the Mets will pull the trigger on the third option at some point but warns that the return could be less than ideal. He mentions the trouble that respective teams have had recently trying to move guys like John Danks, Prince Fielder and Matt Garza. I think Theo Epstein’s asking price for Garza is through the roof at this point, but in the case of Danks and Fielder, I feel like they were not getting strong return offers partly because those players only had one year left on their deals. No team wants to trade a big package for a player who is likely to leave at the end of the season. This is why I think the Mets are better off trading Wright sooner than later.

Olney thinks that this year’s trade deadline is when we will see Wright moved. I can hop on board with this as it will give Wright the chance to show teams that he can still be a middle-of-the-order bat and it will also take advantage of teams’ desperation to distance themselves or keep pace with their competitors in the playoff race. One AL scout who is very high on Wright considers him a “potential coup” and goes on to compare Wright’s situation to Adrian Beltre’s tenure in Seattle’s cavernous Safeco Field. Who knows if Wright will be as explosive once he moves away from Queens, but take another look at the monster numbers he posted before moving to Citi Field. And the dude is only 29 so its not like he’s over the hill by any stretch. There will definitely a valuable trade package available, it’s just a matter of Sandy Alderson and the New York Mets finding it and pulling the trigger.

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2 Rants to “Buster Olney Discusses David Wright’s Future...”

Edgy DC says:

January 21, 2012 at 5:51 pm

“No team wants to trade a big package for a player who is likely to leave at the end of the season.”

I wouldn’t say no team. It only takes one.

I also don’t know about big. How about a good package? The Mets got a top prospect for two months of Carlos Beltran.

“This is why I think the Mets are better off trading Wright sooner than later.”

I don’t want Wright to go anywhere. I hate trades.

The 2013 option the Mets have on Wright is voided if he is traded. It’s an option switch only the Mets can pull. And apparently, pulling it now, still wouldn’t count if he were traded.

Reply
- craigwilliams says:
  
  January 21, 2012 at 9:24 pm
  
  You’re right on most accounts. I actually had a paragraph (that I had to delete for reasons to boring to repeat) mentioning the acquisition of Zack Wheeler from the San Francisco Giants in exchange for one half-season rental of Carlos Beltran who was not even going to bring back any draft pick compensation. I would be thrilled if a similar deal presented itself in exchange for David Wright. Even though it does only take one team to bite, teams are generally reluctant to pay up in such a situation. You bring up a good point that I failed to include about the option that is voided if he is traded. While those options can definitely be a snag at times, they don’t seem to present too big of a problem too often. You say you don’t like trades, but let me ask you this: what good does David Wright do the New York Mets over the next two seasons?
  
  Reply