The Mets’ trade for Yoenis Cespedes truly is a holiday for the rest of us! He’s exactly what the Mets’ lineup needs – a righthanded power hitter. And the Mets didn’t panic and give up too much after the Carlos Gomez trade fell apart. Good work, Sandy Alderson!
When I first heard that the Mets got Cespedes, I didn’t find out right away what they had to give up. If it had been Zack Wheeler for a two-month rental, I would have been the one crying in the middle of the Met game. Detroit’s Dave Dombrowski is a shrewd GM (as Squawker Lisa knows from how many times he has fleeced Brian Cashman), and I knew he wouldn’t let Cespedes go for the proverbial bag of balls.
Michael Fulmer was a big-time prospect a couple of years ago, but he fell off the radar due to injuries. This year, he is healthy and has become a good prospect again. The Mets.com pipeline watch lists Fulmer as the no. 7 prospect and Luis Cessa, the other prospect going to Detroit, as no. 16.
By contract, the Tigers received Toronto’s top prospect, Daniel Norris, and their #11 and #19 prospects for two months of David Price. Price is a star pitcher who is worth more than the streaky Cespedes, but with top hitters at a premium, Alderson was able to land Cespedes at what looks like a reasonable cost.
Alderson was willing to take on salary. He was willing to go against his usual plan and take on a player who rarely walks. And he didn’t worry about what will happen to his big acquisition from last winter, Michael Cuddyer, when (if?) Cuddyer is healthy again.
And now we can look forward to Cespedes performing his feats of strength for a Mets team that suddenly has a lot more credibility in their bid to get to the postseason for the first time in nine years. Happy Cespedes, everyone!
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