As most are aware by now, the Mets and Brewers had agreed to a trade that would’ve sent Carlos Gomez to New York in exchange for Zack Wheeler and Wilmer Flores, but medical concerns derailed the agreement. Reports last night surfaced to say that Gomez’s hip was the issue, though agent Scott Boras issued an adamant denial to FOX Sports saying that Gomez is healthy and has never seen a hip specialist.
Some additional context to the situation as well as the latest on the trade rumors pertaining to both teams in the wake of the failed deal…
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that Gomez had an MRI three to four weeks ago for an abductor issue — not a hip issue — and the reports from that test said he had no issues with his abductor or his hip (Twitter link).
- Sherman also spoke to Brewers GM Doug Melvin (All Twitter links), who informed him that while the Mets have concerns over Gomez’s medical records, the Brewers do not. Said Melvin: “I don’t believe Carlos Gomez has a physical issue. Our training staff won best in baseball the last 2 years. We take a lot of pride in that. We don’t think anything is wrong with him besides any nick that happens to any ballplayer.”
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel hears that the ultimate issue in the trade may have been financial. A source tells Haudricourt that the initial scenario being discussed would have sent Juan Lagares to Milwaukee, but the Brewers were hesitant because of a publicly known elbow issue through which he is playing and because of Lagares’ $23MM extension, which kicks in next season. The next iteration of the trade became Wheeler and Flores for Gomez, but the Mets then asked that the Brewers include their 2016 Competitive Balance draft pick, which Milwaukee declined to do. Following that, the Mets asked for cash considerations to be included, but the Brewers were also unwilling to pick up any of the tab. It was at that point that the Mets backed out, citing Gomez’s hip, sources tell Haudricourt. (Sherman heard much of the same — Twitter links — though Haudricourt’s report provides much more context on the matter.)
- The Mets will remain active on the trade market, it seems, and Marc Carig of Newsday hears that the team’s “clear preference” is to get someone who can play center field (Twitter link). Given Lagares’ injury, it makes sense to see the Mets targeting help in that area. I recently broke down the trade market for center fielders, for those wondering what options could be available to New York.
- The Mets aren’t in on the Padres’ Justin Upton, partially due to his status as a half-season rental, reports Andy Martino of the New York Daily News (Twitter links). The Mets would prefer to avoid rental players, he adds, though he does also note that the team has at least checked in with the Tigers on Yoenis Cespedes following the collapse of the Gomez deal.
- It’s unclear where this scenario leaves the Mets in terms of trade direction, tweets MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo. The team likes Gerardo Parra but was also unable to agree on a price point in discussions with the Brewers. New York also likes Jay Bruce, but he doesn’t fit their desire for someone who can handle center field. Bruce has just 285 big league inning in center — all coming in 2008.
Big mess all around.
Mets are an embarrassment
That timeline and negotiations make more sense than just a sudden discovery of some horrible disabling hip problem. The two teams couldn’t agree, and there’s some spin going on.
I’m glad the Mets shot themselves in the foot on this one… the return for Gomez was less than ideal in my eyes (If they’d taken two injured Mets for a healthy Gomez, Melvin would have taken a public beating) and for them to ask for money on top, is ludicrous. Gomez should fetch a similar return in the off-season.
Kind of glad the trade fell through in a way, partly because I’m not a huge Gomez fan and partly because I want the Wilpons to continue to be viewed as cheap fools, in the case that is was the $$$ that held this deal up.
God, do I hate my franchise so much.
I’d say so. You must be big into “your” franchise if you didn’t want to see them make a trade that makes them immediately better now and the future.
They are the worst ownership in sports.
They aren’t the worst ownership group in their own division (Marlins/Loria); it’s wild to suggest they’re the worst ownership group in sports.
The Marlins also have horrible ownership. The difference is they occasionally win.
as long as the Wilponzies own the Mets, they will never succeed!! cheap, cheap, cheap
I really don’t see this as a Mets snafu. More like media jumping the gun in the middle of a negotiation. They wanted to include Lagares, which makes total sense (what would they do with him anyway with Gomez on the team?). Brewers didn’t bite. So they asked for money or a pick in exchange for going with a much cheaper (and more valuable) Flores. Brewers didn’t bite, probably in part because their fan base had read about the deal and gave it a thumbs down. So deal falls apart.
Seems totally normal to me. Mets should go after Charlie Blackmon now.
Haha right they listen to all us arm charm GMs. Haha
Blackmon would be a great option, but he is controllable…thus very expensive.
Blackmon for Lagares and Wheeler? I think the Rockies take that seriously. Lagares would be killer in that Coors outfield, and anyone can hit there.
Blackmon is likely not even as good as Lagares. It’s an odd assertion to ask for Lagares AND Wheeler for him.
You think the Brewers make personnel decisions based on fan reaction?
Sandy blew it.
Gomez hip ailment was very well documented in the press…. Mid June of this year. The official press release after his MRI said everything was fine (but those releases can always be taken with a grain of salt) and Counsell even spoke about it being a hip issue. Now, suddenly they are saying (according to Sherman) it was never a hip issue….really? Teams cannot share medical records until a deal is made. At that time the Mets would have had access to the MRI and any treatments etc. they would also have had their own medical staff review the MRI… So while many are mocking the entire thing it is entirely feasible
That’s sort of how I view it. Just seems like typical checking of medical records and the Mets not liking what they saw. I mean, of course the Brewers are going to say that it’s not a hip issue as they’re still trying to trade him. I think this is all pretty overblown, but that’s where we are. Oh well.
Really, the easiest comparison is Balfour. When Baltimore refused to sign him because of medical concerns Oakland and their fans cried foul… There is nothing wrong with him…. Baltimore is crazy. He signs with Tampa, people say “Take that Baltimore… Tampa doctors checked him out and he is fine”…. I think we all know how that worked out.
Excellent point.
The lynch mob mentality that occurs during the off-season meetings and trade deadline are proved wrong more often then not. See Preller, AJ.
Tis amazing
While they are saying it was an abductor issue, which would be the muscles around your hip. So all they’re really saying is that it was not an issue in the joint, but rather a strain in the muscle around it, which is far less of an issue to be concerned about.
I’ve been following baseball for 45 years now and can’t remember a trade deadline like this one. I believe that it’s a sign of the game, social media, and the overall state of baseball today. I’m enjoying it, and think it’s awesome.
I’ve seen a few in the past.
What I can recall is how little these trades work out short-term. But how many sleepers are found from panicky GM’s that throw caution to the wind about the future.
I don’t know which side is lying, but I lean toward it being the Brewers. The Brewers have a vested interest in Gomez being perceived as healthy, as they’re trying to trade him. So they toss out this story about the Mets being cheap – a meme everyone believes. But the story itself is odd – the Mets either wanted to force Lagares contract on the Brewers – to save money – or, failing that, to get a competitive balance pick, which would cause them to spend money. So since they couldn’t get either, they passed on a player they wanted badly. A little odd, I would say.
Then there’s the problem of the reporting of the deal. Ken Rosenthal is the best-connected and most reliable reporter in the business. If he said the Gomez for Wheeler and Flores trade was agreed on, I believe him. He wasn’t the only one reporting this and none of those guys had a vested interest in announcing a trade before it was done.
Then there is Gomez recent performance: no stolen bases in a month (after only 2 in June) and no HR in 3 weeks. For now, I’ll buy the Mets side of this, as it makes more logical sense. This story isn’t done and I suspect Ken Rosenthal will have more to say, as his professional credibility has been attacked.
Unless you have some sort of intrinsic reason to want the Mets to be the honest broker, it’s hard to suspect the Brewers are at fault here. The Mets desperately wanted Gomez, didn’t want to pay for him, and then invented a reason to blow up the deal.
Doug Melvin is not an exciting GM. He’s boring as mud. But to his credit he is a fair, patient and shrewd broker.
“The Mets desperately wanted Gomez, didn’t want to pay for him, and then invented a reason to blow up the deal”
This seems like just as much of a leap of faith as thinking the Brewers are at fault, imo. Like, they straight up ‘invented’ a reason?
They agreed to the deal, then they leaked the deal, then begged for things that weren’t agreed on, then made up an excuse to kill it.
Only problem is Ken Rosenthal only interviewed the Mets GM prior to releasing his story. Mets fans trying to save face in this debacle.
The Brewers don’t really have to deal Gomez and if they don’t find the right price they will be more than happy to bring him back for next year or look for suitors in the off season. If you think the fact that the Mets would give up on a player they wanted badly just because they didn’t want to take on salary, then you obviously don’t know the Wilpons. As for Rosenthal or anyone else having no interest in announcing a trade before it’s done, of course they do, they all want to break a story as soon as possible even if the deal is not final. Need examples? All you have to do is go back and look at the Cueto and Latos deals earlier in the week.
Gomez’s numbers have dipped in some areas, not surprisingly areas that can be impacted by a hip problem. Stolen bases/speed, power, and range.
2012-2015
SB:…37, 40, 34, 7 (stolen bases)
ISO:… .202, .222, .193, .161 (isolated power)
PwrSpd: 25.1, 30.0, 27.4, 7.5 (uses HR & SB in formula)
UZR: 6.9, 27.2, 7.0, 4.1
So….yeah, I’m guessing his hip(s) are impacting his play.
You can’t just look at steals and HR. Steals are down because he’s hitting lower in the order and often had guys like Lind or Ramirez in front of him. Counsell also doesn’t like to run like Roenicke did. UZR is down because of some bad errors and his terrible decisions on throws. HRs are down due to bad pitch selection resulting in a higher K rate and much higher ground ball rate, plus batting 6 he isn’t seeing the pitches he was at the top of the order. The hip may or may not be a factor. His speed rating is still good even though his range rating is down and he doesn’t look like there’s any issue when he’s flying around the bases or swinging so hard his helmet falls off. Hit exit velocity and hard hit ball % are still in line with the last couple years, they just tend to be on the ground more.
I don’t know why there has to be an “at fault” or why anyone lied.
A trade was agreed to pending physicals. We see more and more trades falling through for just that reason. We’re not talking of trading a couple of pet rocks. We’re talking about trading professional commodities with millions and probably tens of millions of dollars of implications. That one party or the other was not totally comfortable with the trade after viewing a physical is not only their right, it is something they are being paid to oversee as a part of a complicated process. That trade could set either or both teams back 2 years in their development, and could ruin multiple peoples careers that they worked decades to build. I see nothing at all wrong with one or both parties backing out.
Because the Brewers are saying the trade never reached the stage of looking at the medical records, that the Mets blew up the trade over a competitive balance pick, which would make them idiots.
Why? If the Mets thought it was an overpay to send those 2 guys without receiving some kind of benefit back along with Gomez or have Milwaukee pay part of his salary then why does that make them idiots?
Doesn’t matter.
The mistake both teams made was allowing information on the discussions to be leaked to the media. They could have waited.
I do hope that you noticed all of the leaks were from the Mets side. The Brewers are notoriously tight lipped when it comes to trading.
In all honesty what i believe happened was before the deadline deals started heating up Alderson went to the Wilpons and got a set amount of money that he could spend.. Once Melvin and Sandy agreed to the deal and both sides were happy Alderson got in touch with the Wilpons and they backtracked on spending money and Sandy could then not afford the deal as it stood.. That is the only thing I can think of that truly fits logically.. Had he simply backed out for medical reasons I think your theory is plausible.. But I think he started asking for money and a draft pick to get the Brewers to pay up or back out of it so he could save face.. When he saw that they were not backing down his only choice was to go down the medical road and make himself look foolish.. Alderson has been in the business way too long to make a simple mistake of not seeing a publicly known medical issue before agreeing to the deal..
At least if I’m ever feeling sad I can always get a good laugh out of the mets offense.
It’s “adductor” not “abductor” – though arguably getting Gomez for Wheeler who his himself damaged and Flores who has been overhyped for years would constitute a kidnapping
Adductor muscles move limbs toward your body, abductor muscles move them away from your body. His problem was with one for his hip abductor muscles.
sure, go ahead and wreck my joke…seriously, though, thanks for clarifying
Either Alderson is making up the hip thing to give the illusion of being competent, or Melvin is lying about the hip to protect Gomez’s future value. It’s a shame that Flores got victimized like that.
I’d like .to see Flores get a shot at left field, playing every day the rest of the year. He’s just a butcher in the infield, no way he can start there. Cuddyer hasn’t helped the Mets at all and shouldn’t be starting any more. I supposed Alderson was planning to continue starting him (biggest contract plays instead of best man plays) nevertheless, which is why he was trying to make gomez for lagares plus Wheeler the basis of the deal. but if Cuddyer starts, we can forget about making the playoffs. With this anemic offense, I’m still convinced the mets will not will 80 games and won’t make the playoffs — no matter how great their pitching.