Sherman’s Latest: Alderson, Cashman, Anthopoulos, Moore

Barring an epic collapse, the Mets and Yankees will reach the postseason together for the first time since 2006, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. In fact, the Mets clinched the NL East just a few minutes ago. Sherman takes a look at how both New York franchises reached October baseball via important offseason and trade deadline moves. Here’s more on Sandy Alderson, Brian Cashman, and others.

• Alderson whiffed on his offseason moves for a second year in a row, per Sherman. Sean Gilmartin, a solid middle reliever, was the best acquisition. Alderson forfeited the Mets’ first round pick and a bundle of cash to sign Michael Cuddyer. That move has seemingly backfired. A lack of depth hurt the club until mid-season when he acquired Kelly Johnson, Juan Uribe, Tyler Clippard, Addison Reed, and Yoenis Cespedes. The promotion of Michael Conforto has also helped.
• The Yankees experienced the polar opposite story. Cashman’s only in-season move of note was the acquisition of Dustin Ackley. However, he spiked the offseason. Rather than invest in more expensive, old players, Cashman focused on youth. First, he gambled that closer Andrew Miller could match the production of former Yankee David Robertson for less money. Cashman was right, and he earned a compensation pick when the White Sox inked Robertson. He also did well to acquire Didi Gregorius and Nathan Eovaldi (if Eovaldi can avoid a second Tommy John surgery).
• While Alderson and Cashman have been vindicated, they won’t win the executive of the year. Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos may have had the biggest impact on his roster by acquiring Josh Donaldson, Russell Martin, Devon Travis, David Price, and Troy Tulowitzki. However, those players were costly – both in prospects and financially.
• Royals GM Dayton Moore is another candidate for top executive. He made a couple unpopular moves that have turned out well, especially the signings of Kendrys Morales and Edinson Volquez. He also acquired Kris Medlen, Ryan Madson, Johnny Cueto, and Ben Zobrist. The club ran away with the AL Central after their surprising success in 2014.
• Rangers GM Jon Daniels has surged up the list. His club was treading water when he traded for Cole Hamels and Jake Diekman at the July deadline. Now Texas is on the cusp of clinching the AL West. He also added Yovani Gallardo prior to the season. Sam Dyson and Mike Napoli were smaller in-season moves. While the acquisition of Hamels may have reinvigorated the club, I still wonder how history will view the trade.
• Meanwhile, Pirates GM Neal Huntington works below the radar, but his role in rostering Francisco Liriano, A.J. Burnett, Francisco Cervelli, Jung-ho Kang, Aramis Ramirez, J.A. Happ, and others should not be underestimated. The club’s depth and versatility is a big reason for their success.
• The Braves may have the second worst record in baseball, but GM John Hart did well to accept reality and rebuild. His remodeling should help the club prepare to contend in 2017 when their new stadium opens. In the process, Hart cleared dead weight off the payroll and improved the farm system dramatically. Personally, my favorite move was the creative swap for Touki Toussaint.