The Rays added to their infield on Tuesday afternoon, signing Amed Rosario to a one-year contract. The Octagon client is reportedly guaranteed $1.5MM and can unlock an additional $500K in incentives. Tampa Bay placed Drew Rasmussen, who is recovering from flexor surgery, on the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move.
Rosario, 28, has been an everyday big league shortstop for many years but is coming off a challenging season. He started the year with the Guardians but was hitting just .265/.306/.369 when the deadline was approaching, with that production translating to a wRC+ of 87. His shortstop defense had always been questionable but it became downright problematic in 2023. He was tagged with grades of -16 Defensive Runs Saved and -15 Outs Above Average with Cleveland.
The Guards flipped him to the Dodgers for Noah Syndergaard, and Rosario’s new club moved him to the other side of the bag most of the time. He seemed to take well to the position switch, at least in a small sample of 190 innings, producing 3 DRS and OAA at an even zero. His bat was roughly the same, as he hit .256/.301/.408 as a Dodger for a wRC+ of 93.
He was a notably better in the two prior seasons. He hit 11 home runs in both 2021 and 2022, a modest number but much better than the six he hit in 2023. He slashed .282/.316/.406 in those two years with Cleveland for a 103 wRC+, not walking much but also avoiding strikeouts, 4.5% walk rate and 18.4% strikeout rate.
Defensively, he had a positive grade from DRS in 2022 but has otherwise always been subpar. OAA has had him in negative territory in each full season of his career. He probably won’t be an everyday option for the Rays at shortstop but he might see some occasional time there.
The Rays love flexibility and have a big hole at shortstop thanks to the absence of Wander Franco, who has an uncertain future as he’s under investigation for having a relationship with an underage girl. In addition to that, Taylor Walls is recovering from hip surgery and will miss at least part of the season. President of baseball operations Erik Neander recently suggested that José Caballero could be the starter to begin the year.
The club also has prospect Junior Caminero, who is generally considered one of the top 10 prospects in the sport and has already made his major league debut. But his bat is considered superior to his defense and some evaluators expect him to wind up at third base rather than short. Osleivis Basabe is in the mix but he didn’t hit much in his first taste of the majors or Triple-A. They added Yu Chang on a minor league deal earlier today to provide some non-roster depth.
Caballero, acquired from the Mariners in the Luke Raley deal, has just 280 MLB plate appearances and slashed just .221/.343/.320 in those. He has some speed, having swiped 26 bags in 29 tries last year, and the defense seems to be good, 4 DRS and 2 OAA thus far. But overall, the Rays don’t have a ton of solid answers for their shortstop position and Rosario could perhaps factor in there.
But if his days at that position are no more, there are still ways for him to be useful for the Rays. The right-handed hitter has wide platoon splits in his career, having hit .298/.339/.467 against lefties for a 121 wRC+ but just .262/.296/.374 the rest of the time for a wRC+ of 84.
The Rays have a left-handed hitting second baseman in Brandon Lowe and he also fares better with the platoon advantage. He’s hit .220/.284/.437 against southpaws, 99 wRC+, but produced a huge line of .253/.349/.499 and 135 wRC+ against righties. He’s also had notable injury setbacks in his career, with 2021 being his only season in the big leagues where he played in more than 109 games. A platoon of Lowe and Rosario at the keystone could perhaps be best for both players.
Players like Josh Lowe and Jonathan Aranda are also lefties with notable issues when southpaws are on the mound. That could perhaps lead to Rosario getting some time as the designated hitter or even taking a corner outfield role on occasion. He has just 171 1/3 innings of outfield experience at the big league level but the Rays could perhaps try to rotate him through if they think it will help their versatility.
Despite his rough season and generally poor defensive track record, Rosario still generated plenty of interest this winter. The free agent market for middle infielders was on the weak side but plenty of teams were in need of help there. The Angels, Marlins, Red Sox and Blue Jays were connected to him at various points in the offseason. The Jays pivoted to Justin Turner and Isiah Kiner-Falefa as their infield additions while the Red Sox filled their second base position by trading for Vaughn Grissom. The Marlins are still looking to upgrade at shortstop but reportedly have made an offer to Tim Anderson. The Angels are known to have interest in bringing back Gio Urshela as a multi-positional infield upgrade.
Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported the Rays and Rosario had agreed to a one-year, $1.5MM contract. Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported the $500K in incentives.
Definitely didn’t expect this. Seems like yesterday this dude was an up and coming prospect for the Mets.
Usually being an up and coming prospect for the Mets means that you have a 90% chance of becoming an overrated bust.
Many great prospects aren’t successful in the big leagues. I remember Cubs broadcasters Len Casper and Bob Brenly practically salivating over the arrival of Felix Pie in 2007. And he was a bust. Rosario has already had a better career than Pie.
Exactly. That’s why it’s always good comedy when Mets fans continue to harp on how great their prospects are and how better they are than other teams’ prospects and actual MLB players…long before the guy has even stepped on an MLB field.
Every team over hyped some prospects. it’s just more noticed in NY due to the media.
You take that back about O’s legend Felix Pie
As opposed to Marlins prospects, who get traded away (if they ever pan out) for more prospects who will get traded away if they ever pan out? lmao that you’ve been banned (apparently) but that is not stopping your decade-long obsession with ripping on the Mets, despite being a fan of one of the worst franchises in the sport.
@rct
FYI – One of the worst sports franchises has 2 championships in 29 seasons while the Mets have 2 championships in 60 seasons.
Hmmmm….
Lastings Milledge gives his regards.
Derp
@Keithy,
Gesundheit!
I remember Mets with Greg Jefferies gonna become their star 5-tool player and bounced him over to STL for Saberhagen. He did well with STL in a short stint, but did NOT live up to the power numbers expectation .
@Datashark: Study your baseball history. Jefferies and Kevin McReynolds were traded to Kansas City for Saberhagen.
I did not care about McReynolds as I was focused on Jefferies…which my statement was true he went to STL before he had some break out years.
@Datashark: But he wasn’t traded to St Louis for Saberhagen. It’s easy to check your facts on Baseball Reference.
I said they bounced him over there regardless if someone went with him or not that was not the point.
I did not state for journalism points to write out complete version as mcreynolds was not part of the article and the reader would only care how Jefferies changed teams.
@MFB
I know some Mets fans get over excited about some prospects, but Rosario was rated as high as the #2 prospect in MLB. I know you like to bash the Mets and their fans, but Rosario isn’t the best example.
@mookie
I agree that Rosario is not the best example. If I was coming up with examples, it would be the following guys:
C-Steve Chilcott
1B-Ike Davis
2B-Reese Havens
SS-Tim Foli
3B-Butch Huskey
OF (just 3 here)-Shawn Abner, Lastings Milledge, and Fernando Martinez
DH-Dom Smith
Pitchers (only 5 here) Bill Pulsipher, Paul Wilson, Matt Harvey, Mike Pelfrey, Tim Leary
RP (just 1): Aaron Heilman*
And just for the heck of it, let’s throw in another prospect bust that was in the Mets system, but was a bust in another sport.
QB-Tim Tebow
Yes, Mets even had an overhyped bust at QB!
Oh, and I have to add a special note. To me, how far the Mets hype machine goes with overhyping their prospects can be best expressed in the Heilman Hype. They were hyping that guy as a prospect all the way into his age-29 season. Oldest prospect ever!
Tebow was NEVER drafted by Mets or any major league baseball team, nor hyped as a baseball player as he came in as a speculative free agent and nothing more.
@MFB
Steve Chilcott? How old are you?
I’ve been a fan since the late 70’s, and personally the only two you named that I was exited about were Pulsipher and Harvey. The biggest disappointments for me were Gregg Jefferies and Jay Payton.
lmao that only Dom Smith is from the last ten years on your list. And Aaron Heilman? Dude was *never* hyped. What in the world are you talking about? Nor was Pelfrey. Tim Tebow? Please dude. You are a joke.
@BMFB: Tim Foli doesn’t fit your narrative. He was traded in a package for Rusty Staub and had more than 1500 hits in a 16-year MLB career.
In all fairness, Steve Chilcott cost the Mets only $75,000; where as, Reggie Jackson cost the A’s $80,000 with the very next pick of the draft. $5,000 was a lot of money in 1966.
Have you gotten the almighty Lew Brinson’s jersey bronzed yet?
rct
lmao that only Dom Smith is from the last ten years on your list.
========================
I don’t know why some fans get so caught up with this. Losing a top-10 is a real blow, but everyone loses guys ranked #85 or whatever.
Was Harvey a bust? He was great for a couple years just hit a wall.
Tim Foli wasn’t a bust. The Mets preferred Bud Harrelson to Foli and traded him for the ultra popular Rusty Staub. The Mets made a lot of bad trades in that era. They traded away Ken Singleton, Amos Otis and Nolan Ryan among others.
SS Alex Escobar was projected to be the Mets’ version of Alex Rodriguez.
CHW Joe Borchard is the biggest prospect bust I can remember followed by OAK Todd Van Poppell.
Clint Hurdle was on the cover of Sports Illustrated before he played his first MLB game. He has to rank up there with all-time busts.
Reminds me of Jeff Francoeur with the Sports Illustrated cover reference. I remember when Jeff was called up like the same day as McCann the announcer said “some evaluators even think McCann has a chance to be better than Francoeur”…how right he was. This is t a Braves thread but I also remember the same guy saying exactly the same thing about Heyward and Freeman. The only time Chip Carey ever made intelligent points.
I think the fuss about Clint Hurdle was because he was only 18 if I remember correctly. He never lived up to the hype but, he wasn’t a complete bust.
Darryl Sconiers was to inherit the Angel’s greatness at 1B from Rod Carew.
Clint Hurdle was on the cover of SI and made his debut at age 20, but yes, he was once 18 years old.
Marlins fan making fun of Mets failures? I love this site
Well the Marlins have won 2 WS…albeit followed by disgraceful dismantling for profit and recent decade of rebuilding
@Rishi
Was that supposed to be hurtful?
Whould that statment hurt me as much as if I maybe say…hmmmm…2 championships in 30 seasons > 2 championsips in 61? Or should it hurt me like if I said…hmmmm…1986?
Why do you assume the statement is meant to be hurtful? As an NL East fan I merely always thought it was a shame that they broke up those great teams. They have developed so much talent and their fanbase could’ve seen nearly constant good teams.I literally commented back to the person talking about Florida that they have won 2 championships and I was implying that the Mets haven’t won any in that time
Yep, he was as high as number two on the list of the top 100 prospects in baseball, one spot behind Yoan Moncada and one spot ahead of Gleyber Torres.
Still think Profar edges him out in the bust department. I’d put Moncada ahead of him too since they were consensus #1 prospect flops w/ even more hype.
I wouldn’t call Rosario a bust. He’s 28 and been good at times, if unspectacular. Most prospects don’t make it at all. Much of this is based on the feeling he underperformed with the Mets but they called him up so young. By 23 he was already above average, a trend that continued every year since except 150 in 2020 fluke year and last year. He’s a great rebound candidate for little money.
I meant 150 at bats
Profar and Moncada played full seasons.
I believe scouting and development have to be on the same page:
There have been more 1st round flops than full time players. Some organizations like the Rays, who have highest success rate, have good development systems to match their scouting whereas organizations like the Tigers, with their lowest success rate, scouting and development are not in sync.
Gleyber Torres isn’t a bust. He’s just not a superstar. I consider Clint Frazier a bust and Miguel Andujar a one year wonder.
Some fans called Bobby Murcer a bust even though he was an all star. Without filling in all the circumstances, noone is ever going to be Mickey Mantle except Mickey Mantle.
Yes, because Pete Alonso, Nimmo, McNeil, Degrom, Harvey, etc were all overrated busts.
Well over that period of time that’s a fairly small list of success really. Better than some teams tho. If Harvey and Sydergaard stayed healthy the story of this era of NYM would possibly be quite different.
The Mets had Generation K group. Only one starter became a good reliever
@calamityfrancis
While Nimmo isn’t a bust, he certainly was not as good as Alderson expected.
And you really need to refrain from using Matt Harvey’s name to try and talk about someone that isn’t a bust. If you noticed, he was on my Mets All Time Busts list. Are you not aware of him?
you take that back about O’s legend Matt Harvey
@BMFB: He obviously is aware of Harvey. Duh.
One O’s legend to another, right Ubaldo?
I mean how good did he expect Nimmo to be? Injuries aside he’s a perennial all-star caliber player.
@Rishi
Um, I’m looking for those All Star appearances, but for some reason he hasn’t been to one. It must be that he’s underrated playing in a small market in NY. If he were in say Pittsburgh or Kansas City, Nimmo would be considered all world with their media hype, right?
As for how good did Alderson expect him to be? Look at the guys he was drafted ahead of.
@GarryHarris: And Mantle was one of the biggest misogynists and alcoholics of his time. The drinking ultimately killed him.
Did I say he made all star teams or that he is an all star caliber player?
Also (I really like Nimmo) he has a career 130 ops+. That’s better (I think) than half the HOF position players. He has finally stayed pretty healthy 2 straight years too. I can accept the injury prone nature from a guy who plays as hard as anyone I’ve ever seen (guy runs to first on a BB). If anyone expects anything more from that from a prospect then their too optimistic. The injuries were no doubt a problem
I guess I should correct their to they’re because of egotists. Also to keep at this I respect Nimmo so much because I grew up a huge fan of some players who were horrible examples. I identified with Marcus Giles for a few years as an underdog (54th? Round pick with a 7.7 WAR season almost unheard of…Piazza aside)…one day I watch a game where he is questionably thrown out at third and proceeds to throw a tantrum and throw water coolers on the field. Many of my bat slams against the ground after a K were the result of such horrible role models. Give me a guy who runs to first on a BB like he’s trying to to steal 1st anyday.
Geez sorry but meant to say 54th? Round pick swinging a bat bigger than he is at about 5’6-5’7
@Rishi
Well, I guess if a person has never been to an All Star Game, any statement that he’s All Star caliber is a matter of opinion.
Or do you feel that Nimmo is underrated because he’s stuck playing in NY, but would get more recognition and make an All Star Game if he played in a bigger market?
Rishi, Exactly. Real recognize real.
Getting onto an all-star team frankly doesn’t mean your all star caliber. I mean the fans vote in half the team and some of the players only make it to give their team a representative. He never made all-star teams because he’s never playing enough to warrant it until the last 2 years. It is a matter of opinion that he’s all star caliber but it’s also a reflection of value. Stats say he is a very valuable piece. He is about a 30% above average hitter playing CF most of that time. He is a good baserunner as well. There are absolutely great players who were rarely if ever all stats. Far better than Nimmo. Some HOF worthy. Especially in steroid era.
Morganna Roberts spent some time on major league ball fields and was a big bust.
And the Jays gave IFK how much?!?
Absolute steal for TB.
Agreed.
Both are bad, IKF is a bit better because he provides defensive value and versatility. By that I mean IKF is worth 1/.$3M
IKF is a valuable super utility guy. He can play anywhere even catcher. Ahmed cannot.
Ikf is worth the money because of his versatility and speed. He’s a guy you can throw anywhere on a given day to give a guy a day off and while getting some good defense and a decent threat on the bases. He was also very clutch with runners in scoring position last year.
Rosario is one of the fastest guys in the game and can play all over as well. Bargain.
Sounds like an over hyped Nicky Lopez to me. MLB trade rumors suggested, before Lopez was traded from ATL to CHW, Lopez being non-tendered at a projected 4 mil. and called it “steep”. So why is IKF worth so much more in people’s minds? Both great fielders (lopez probably better-at least up the middle) who can’t really hit. Both versatile. Not fair to base everything on one example tho, especially since Lopez never hit the open market and the IKF deal was possibly boosted by desperation. I think IKF also got more regular playing time last couple years which Lopez says (not getting enough) has hurt his offense (being cast as a UTL player). I’d take Lopez at SS (maybe 2B), IKF at third.
How did IKF get 2/14 terrible by the blue jays
IKF is a decent and useful player in my book(He can play & backup almost anywhere. I’m not sure why so many people are down on him. If you want to rail on about a virtually useless utility guy, let’s talk Seattle’s Dylan Moore . Moore could be the most feeble offensive player in MLB.
Most feeble? Austin Hedges.
Still valuable. Just overpaid.
Crazy that, because of the contract structures, Hedges is making double what Ohtani is this season, lol.
Most feeble starting position player? Myles Straw. Bench players are allowed to be feeble (to some extent)
Straw is one of the better defensive center fielders in the league.
IFK is okay defensively in the infield, not very good in the outfield.
Dylan Moore’s been a better hitter than IKF 4 of the past 5 years
“Better hitter than IKF”…I can see you don’t watch the Mariners much and just pulling analytics from baseball-reference.com is not quite the same as regularly watching guys play.
“Dylan Moore’s been a better hitter “…Apparently his coaches and manager don’t think so. In the 5 seasons of his career Dylan Moore has NEVER come CLOSE to 400 plate appearances, whereas IKF has won a GG and has recent seasons of 677 plate appearances and 500+ plate appearances. Are you seriously promoting a guy who had 167 plate appearances last year as “better” than anybody?..
Why do you have to go out of your way to pick on Dylan Moore? Is it something personal ?? You could have just let that one go and gone about your day but you insist on dragging his name thru the mud ?
Moore pulls the ball well, barrels the ball well, finds the sweet spot well, and gets his walks.
Suggesting he could be the most ‘feeble offensive player in MLB’ is the strangest baseball comment I’ve seen today–and I’ve seen a lot.
If anything, he’s one of the most under-rated role players in baseball. Seattle knows how valuable he is, though.
“Most underrated role players”..That’s why Dylan Moore had 167 plate appearances last year and has NEVER come close to 400 PA, right? Apparently his Mgr and coaches don’t agree with your assessment. It’s pretty easy to look good((very small samples) when you very rarely get off the bench before the 7th or 8th inning.
He started the season on the IL last and missed significant time, but role players & utility players get situational PAs depending on…. (wait for it)…. the role they’re need for.
Servais absolutely understands his value. So does Jerry and Justin, hence extending him.
And you may not realize it, but he’s their go-to SS behind JP. He’s a lock for the roster, whether you understand his value or not.
This is kind of funny, because PAs aren’t really the stat to look at, anyway. He played in 104 games in 2022, 126 in 2021, 38 in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, and 113 in 2019.
Over that span, he accumulated 6.1 fWAR in 1238 PAs. Defense is part of his value as well, especially considering he plays the entire field, but that’s roughly a 3 WAR average over the course of a full season.
Feel free to try to discredit that.
MLB – it’s more about the money that was spent by the Jays. IKF as an addition is not bad. But how money was allocated can be questioned, and is worth 5x more than Rosario? Maybe?
$7.5 for IKF
$13 for Turner
$10.5 for Kiermaier
$8 for a Cuban pitcher
Plus other arbitration players who were trade candidates and guys they could have dealt to gain monetary flexibility. Seems IKF is the new target, fair or not, for Jays fans.
$15-mil over 2, but yeah fair point.
I’m not trying to be IKF’s P.R agent, but there was a time when 7M was the standard pay for average, “good clubhouse” type veterans. So much so that ESPN even started calling those guys the “mediocre $7M veteran”. I’m not an analytics guy(I actually watch), but for those that are: IKF & Moore have played roughly a similar number of seasons and IKF’s career W.A.R is 10.1 and Dylan Moore’s is 4.7 W.A.R…Just the playing time alone suggests one is FAR above the other.
Guess you can say that’s a minor upgrade from Franco
Ok that shouldn’t have made me laugh but it did!
The Wander Franco jokes and memes have to stop. He prides himself and thinks of himself as a man of faith as there’s a drive to deep left by Castellanos and it’ll be a home run so that’ll make it a 4-0 ballgame
congratulations @phillies, I got muted by sad Filihok yesterday. For some reason he likes to throw insults at people for making jokes and then mutes them because he can’t take criticism lol.
So you’re saying it is a badge of honor, ha ha.
If…He’s really muted everyone he says he has, it will be lonely here soon for him.
I know Right? He’s got to have like two people he can talk to. And yeah a little bit of a badge of honor, I’m honestly just ashamed he didn’t mute me earlier lol.
Pretty great signing and while he is not Wander Franco he is a solid a versatile bat and fielder.
He’s probably happy with not being W*nder Fr*nco
I love these people that can’t even type his name lmao. Like what in the hell do you think you’re accomplishing by not typing his full name and leaving 2 letters out? You just look dumb
KC
Ah yes
The old
“I don’t understand
so
You’re dumb”
Idiocy
you watch baseball?
I suppose he is defensively versatile in the sense that he can play multiple positions very poorly. Hard to go wrong at $1.5 million though.
His arm is below average but he has excellent sprint speed. You’d think with the right coaching & reps he’d be a passable corner outfielder. Doesn’t hit enough to play out there w/ any regularity though. Maybe the Rays think he can be a better infield defender than he’s shown. Don’t know.
Still hard to hate it at this price point.
Strowman- Rosario definitely has the speed. Cleveland tried him for a bit in the OF and the results were pretty bad. It could be a scenario where he just didn’t have enough reps.. but there was a lot of motivation for Cleveland to make that work (wanting to keep his bat in the lineup, OF needs, middle infield logjam) and it still ended up being a very short-lived experiment.
The fact that he’s not Wander Franco is actually a point in his favor. 😉
Seems like a steal
Its an absolute steal! Left handed bat – 20 homer plus pop and can play all over the place. ANY team could have used him.
RHH
Well that’s an update on the Ol Baseball reference. It said Left 2 days ago
Rays gotta be planning to make a trade for pitching soon id imagine. So many infield options not enough spots.
Another one the Padres passed on…is $1.5 million really that too expensive for the Padres?!
I don’t know their entire roster, but don’t the Padres already have like 3 shortstops?
actually 4 .tatis, kim, xander, and machado.along with their top prospect Jackson is a ss as well so technically 5..
some just likes to complain that their team finally realized that a mid to small market team cant be top heavy on contracts that removes flexibility even on minor deals such as this. Besides signing Rosario to major league deal makes no sense for the padres unless you expect machado and his bat to be out for extended time which would again be silly as without machado i dont think they even make the last wildcard spot this year with the rotation they have.
How’d you forget Tucupita Marcano? That makes 6!
that name i dont recognize but adds even more of a reason not to do it.
I don’t think the Padres need a utility infielder.
Boras wants to wait, but it seems like this year the players are panicking instead of the owners. How he only got a million and a half is crazy. Especially compared to what others got. So what’s Anderson or Solano gunna get…..free hot dogs at every game?
@D-Nice
I’m getting giddy at the possibility of what the Marlins can do with a possible discussion with Tim Anderson.
And to your great point about this deal compared to others. As I compared below, look at what the Mets signed Joey Wendle for in November compared to what Rosario is getting. Rays get Rosario for $1.5 million; Mets get Wendle for $2 million.
And more to come. Can you imagine if the Marlins sign their upgrade at SS for less than the guy they were happy to let go of?
Even if he duplicates 2023 it will still be a bargain for TB. In fact, I’d say this is THE bargain signing of the year.
Well, either Rosario knows something about the Marlins situation or he’s desperate at this point.
This is definitely a steal and something that marlins should’ve offered him.. and DFA Avi Garcia… There were no reports on Rosario getting an offer from Marlins.
Seems like Miami is focusing on trying to get Tim Anderson or Gio Ursela (who is the guy I want them to get, to push Burger to 1B/DH). I’d rather them give Amaya or Brujan a shot at SS along with Berti, or acquire an everyday controllable SS for Edward Cabrera.
Great thoughts on your part. Right now this signing makes things look really good for what the Marlins have been looking at recently.
And stay tuned on Avi Garcia being DFA-ed. I think the Trey Mancini deal is specifically with that in mind. And if not that, if Troy Johnston does anything, that could be the trigger. I think this Spring, and/or early in the season, the AVI DFA Watch is in effect.
Urshela looks to be in a good spot.
He has interest from Miami where there’s no state income tax and a clear path to playing time.
He has interest from the Angels where he can command more than enough money to offset the state taxes and is backing up Rendon so another clear path to playing time.
@hhjj Rosario would’ve been a decent add for the price. Hopefully angels can sign urshela his price has to be around 3 -5 million.
Papelbon was on foul territory, saying if he was perry he would see if rendon would give up 20 million or anything to retire early.
Good pickup.
Presumably he is part of the 2b/ss mix with Lowe and Caballero to start the season. Would seem to push back Caminero’s and Mead’s chances at making the opening day roster somewhat.
Mead may make it, Caminero will not–it’s the Rays’ way (and gives people an opportunity to complain). Caminero will be up at some point, I don’t see anyone standing in the way of him getting playing time when he gets back to the bigs. Dude is legit. I am also anxiously anticipating Carson Williams to play ss…next year, though.
Not so fast, he was not much with Cleveland last year. Can he keep Caballero on on the bench.
Now for free agency comparison.
Mets sign Joey Wendle for $2 million in NOVEMBER.
Rays sign Amed Rosario for $1.5 million in FEBRUARY.
Does anything else need to be said that isn’t already said in this comparison of these two signings?
Wendle is more versatile and Ahmed isn’t a great defender.
Wendle is versatile in that, at this point in his career, he can stand at a position and hope the ball is hit directly to him. At least Amed is mobile.
Sorry, but us Marlins fans saw what Wendle is at this point in his career. There’s no defense for the Mets jumping all over themselves to sign Wendle to a MLB contract for a guaranteed $2 million in NOVEMBER when they could’ve waited until now to sign him to a MiLB deal for far less that wasn’t guaranteed with an invite to Spring Training.
The Rays deal with Rosario for $1.5 million now in comparison to the Mets jumping to the deal they gave Wendle for $2 million in November shows why the Rays are the Rays and why the Mets are the Mets.
I called the Wendle deal a bad deal in November and I call it a bad deal today. This deal Rosario did with the Rays proves that the Mets gaffed on that Wendle deal, and better hope that he has a career resurgence to not make them look as stupid as they usually do…only with their latest GM who is supposed to be their latest “savior”.
So tell us how you really feel about the Mets and how every move they make is wrong. Lol
I didn’t criticize every move they had this offseason. I actually defended some of them when their own fan base was calling for Stearns’ head.
It was just this Wendle deal that I bashed because I know that he could’ve been had for far less now in February on a MiLB deal and an invite to Spring Training.
But feel free to try to debate it if you beg to differ. I’d love to hear it…or are you just taking a shot with no substance to distract from that bad move they made?
But do keep up with my actual actions on here.
It’s not that you’re wrong it’s just that couldn’t you make the same critique over lots of other signings too this offseason as they now compare to this Rosario deal? Seems to be almost universal consensus this is a pretty good deal. Are the Mets the only club who may have overpaid for a spare part middle infielder in hindsight?
And Rosario will cost the Rays 3 games with base running blunders
@provoker
For $1.5 million, you kind of can’t compain about three games that are cost because it isn’t like the Rays are paying a ton. You want to compare that price for what the Marlins pay Avi Garcia to cost us games everytime his name is in the lineup?
That’s a steal for 1.5 million worst case scenario solid bench piece
Or a mid season trade piece if the wheels fall off the cart that pushes the Ray’s season.
That’s future superstar Amed Rosario to you, thank you very much!
Anyway, watch it happen.
Hey, Amed Rosario isn’t the worst overhyped Mets prospect in the world (Steve Chilcott or any other dozen of others)…not even one currently around the game (Billy Beane)…and not the worst one signed in the last 48 hours (Dom Smith..cough…cough).
The same Steve Chilcott they picked over Reggie Jackson.
Rosario was comparable to Tim Anderson, this is pretty much the kind of deal for Anderson. My guess is the Marlins make Anderson a similar offer or whatever team was kicking the tires on him.
Good signing for the Rays. Very affordable and it’s just 1 year so worth the shot.
@OY
they say there’s no such thing as a bad one-year deal. but the eye test on him in the field is ugly. it’s just standing next to the base considered being versatile? seriously, Rays magic dust will turn him into an all-star
I don’t understand why there wasn’t more interest in Amed.
SS might not be he best position in terms of range and other criteria.
But he also has value as a 3B/2B and he even played some OF.
Good managers know how to get the best out of their players.
I believe Plan A is for José Caballero to be the Rays main SS. (recent trade with SEA for Luke Raley 1B/OF) who had his best year yet of 3)
There are concerns Jose may be overmatched offensively over the course of a full season but he can work to improve his results.
Wander Franco was going to be a big part of their team at SS.
Rays have high hopes for Junior Caminero 20-Year-Old Third Baseman
to be SS of their near future (He could always play another position)
Rays are always moving players in and out to keep total salary so low.
I can’t wait for Rosario to breakout for the first half of the year and the Rays flip him to a “contender” that ultimately misses the playoffs, whilst getting a 20 y/o “no name” pitcher who is the ace of the rotation in 3 years. Classic Rays lol
Best part of Rosario’s game is his speed and baserunning. Dude can fly. Wears a brick for a glove with little range. Nice gap hitter. A positive force in the clubhouse. Is best friends with Jose Ramirez.
Sold pick up. I wish the Dodgers would’ve kept him. He’d be a solid 2nd baseman when Mookie eventually moves back to RF.
He’s really a guy without a position and doesn’t have enough power to be a DH.
the real question is will he wear No. 14????
Was hoping the Angels would get it done with him after showing interest. They need to bring back Urshela since they missed on this. Arguably was one of our most consistent hitters before going down.
Love it, rays will rebuild his stock I bet that’s why he signed for so cheap.
I don’t think that he signed so cheap because of what the Rays can do for him revamping his career. I think this comes down to leverage.
You are a Rays fan and I’m a Marlins fans. But even we know that if you’re a free agent, and your bidding war is between the Marlins and Rays, you need to hold off on your purchase of that mansion and Lamborghini. I’m even guessing that when Rosario’s agent told him who the bidding war was between, Amed said, “Oh S%^&#$!” Let’s see what Tim Anderson signs for now that the Rays are out of his sweepstakes. Will the Marlins bid against themselves and give him Joey Wendle money?
Dammit, the Ray’s are smart.
Joey Wendle
Regular Season
Career
GP AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO
102 297 33 63 16 3 2 20 13 67
Ahmed Rosario
263
HR
6
RBI
58
Mets last World Series win. 1986
Rosario is a very solid ball player. When I saw the headline and the fact that camp started already I figured it’d at least be worth 3.5-5MM.
And with that signing, Donovan Walton lets out a big HOORAY! Another step closer for Walton breaking opening day camp with the Giants.
Finally!!! The signing we were all waiting for. Any deferred money?
Would rather have prime Albert Pujols.
For 1.5 mil, guessing a lot of teams wished they would have pursued him
HHe will be an all-star this year.
Good signing.
I’m going to invest a few bucks on Junior C in my roto league now…
Looking at that K, Tim Anderson might have to pay a team to roster him.
Rays doing Rays things.
Dodgers and Rays have it figured out
Be so analytically good that players prefer playing for you than for other teams.
Marlins gave Anderson a one year, $2M offer. As a Marlin fan, I sure hope he doesn’t take it.
You’re better off. TA needs to take a year and play in Asia to work on himself and his game.