What to do with Daniel Murphy
An article Monday in the Daily News claims at least two teams “have done preliminary homework” on Daniel Murphy, but so far Sandy Alderson says he is not inclined to trade him. What Alderson does with Murphy will show what he really thinks of this team that he has constructed.
I have been saying for a while that I expect the Mets to trade Daniel Murphy; after all, he will be a free agent after the 2015 season, a season in which he might make upwards of $8 million. That might be too much for a player like Murphy, and will almost definitely be too much for the stingy Mets.
Let’s say Alderson holds onto Murphy for one more year and trades some of his excess starting pitching for a proven power hitter. That will be an indication that Alderson thinks his plan for the Mets has finally come to fruition and they will be ready to compete for the post season.
However, if Alderson trades Murphy and/or a couple of starters for prospects, it is a sign that Alderson thinks the team is not ready and that this seemingly unending rebuilding process still has a ways to go.
If the second scenario plays out, it would be a damn shame and should cost Alderson his job. This is year four for him and his grand plan, and the Mets have steadily been getting worse. If Alderson does not makes moves to drastically improve the big league club in 2015, how long does he need? Shouldn’t five years be enough?
If I had to make a prediction, I would say that Murphy will be dealt to a desperate contender at the trading deadline for a high-end prospect, just as Alderson was trying to do in the off-season. It will weaken the team’s already putrid offense and send the Mets to a 90-loss season.
It will also be another signal that Mets fans will have to wait until 2016 for the team to be any good. The Mets are losing fans on a daily basis — how many will be left by then? Other than that, Sandy Alderson is doing an excellent job rebuilding the Mets.
Have been waiting for someone to bring this up. How they handle him is a big moment for this team, and would be hard to believe that they would even consider trading him now given that they are playing him out of position – which certainly diminishes his value. I [sort of] jokingly refer to Murphy as “Pete Rose”. So obvious watching him hit, imagine what he’ll do when he’s finally playing first or DH’ing. Trade might almost end up being Nolan Ryan-ish.
I am holding judgement on the Granderson / Chris Young over Marlon Byrd / Nelson Cruz choices, given that it’s still fairly early in the season, both Grandy and Young are streaky and might still show more, and I do like the idea of playing three outfielders with range at Zhiti.
But the Murphy thing is beyond debate. Fine, play Duda the rest of the year at first, see what he can do – despite the fact that they are only a few games out in a surprisingly weak division and I find myself scratching my head about why they seem to be sitting back and waiting for next year. Patience is one thing but it;s time to see them finally get smart about personnel. If Duda doesn’t hit 30 this year and they don’t locate an actual second basemen and m move Murphy to first next April that tells you all you need to know. Note to Sandy: guys with the potential of getting 3,000 hits in their career are hard to find. And so far you ain’t Billy Beane.