- 5 weeks ago
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00:01:30You can no longer play him in center field.
00:01:32Honestly, a little shaky in left field, but we're going to discuss all of that in the
00:01:37trade.
00:01:37I'm intrigued to hear from everyone in the chat.
00:01:39I know a lot of you are waiting and watching in the chat.
00:01:42Let us know what you think of this trade.
00:01:43Do you like it?
00:01:44Do you like Brandon Nimmo being moved here for Marcus Simeon?
00:01:48Let us know what you think there in the chat.
00:01:50But we've got ourselves a fantastic show.
00:01:51Got some really good guests joining me.
00:01:53We have Anthony Rivera of the Subway to Shea podcast joining me.
00:01:56John Soppenaro of the Till Mets Do Us Part podcast also will join me a little later in the show.
00:02:00And then our very own MLB columnist and insider John Heyman will also be joining me as well.
00:02:07But first up, I guess leading off is my guy from the Subway to Shea podcast.
00:02:12Anthony Rivera joins me now so we can talk a little bit about this.
00:02:15Anthony, how are you doing, man?
00:02:16I'm doing well.
00:02:18This trade somewhat comes out as a shock, but not as much.
00:02:23I think you and I had talked about possibly trading Brandon Nimmo.
00:02:27This was the contract that the Mets really needed to figure out a way to trade.
00:02:32Now, I love Brandon Nimmo.
00:02:33He's one of my favorite Mets.
00:02:35But if you're talking about retooling this team and changing, I don't want to say changing
00:02:40the culture, but just changing what the lineup looks like and David Stearns finally make his
00:02:46mark on this team.
00:02:47This is the contract you want to trade.
00:02:49There's so much left on this deal.
00:02:51Signed through 2030.
00:02:53That was an eight-year deal.
00:02:55$162 million for him to enter field.
00:02:58And he only played one year in center field and the rest in left field.
00:03:01And as we've seen him play over the last couple of years, you start seeing the body starting
00:03:06to deteriorate for Brandon Nimmo to the point where I'm saying, if I'm keeping Brandon Nimmo
00:03:11on this roster, at some point, he's going to have to be the DH of this team.
00:03:15And I'm pretty sure the Mets want to go in different directions and have many lanes opens
00:03:19when it comes to the DH.
00:03:20So Brandon Nimmo had to be the guy to get traded.
00:03:23Now they get Marcus Simeon, who's 35 years old, but his deal ends in 2028.
00:03:29I think John Heyman, who's going to be on the show later, mentioned that the Mets are
00:03:33going to send $5 million extra as part of this deal.
00:03:37So it's a one-for-one.
00:03:40I am okay with this trade for as of right now.
00:03:43I need to see what the end result is.
00:03:45And I assume that there's going to be a lot of work that this Mets team is going to do,
00:03:49that David Stearns is going to do.
00:03:51And it really jumpstarts the point in him saying that this team needs to get more defensive,
00:03:57get to have more run prevention.
00:03:59And they do the guy like Marcus Simeon, who's a very good defensive player at second base.
00:04:04And as we saw, Brandon Nimmo started to struggle out there in the outfield.
00:04:09Yeah, we were seeing that.
00:04:10And I think you and I talked about this at the end of the season.
00:04:13I'm glad you mentioned it.
00:04:14We were saying, hey, we would not necessarily be upset if we saw the Mets try to improve
00:04:18defensively, move on from Brandon Nimmo, Jeff McNeil, another name we had mentioned.
00:04:21And now with Simeon here, we'll get to this later, you would think the Mets are moving
00:04:26on from Jeff McNeil already.
00:04:28But here's going to be the opposition to what you said, Anthony, in terms of you being okay
00:04:33with this trade.
00:04:34Some fans, I think, and some people around baseball are going to look at this and say,
00:04:37well, Nimmo had better offensive numbers than Simeon in almost every single category last
00:04:42year.
00:04:43Nimmo played 30 more games than Simeon, who's had a lot of injury history himself through
00:04:48his career.
00:04:49Uh, Simeon played in 127 games, Nimmo in 155.
00:04:54And then you got the age factor as well, too.
00:04:56Simeon is 35.
00:04:57He is three years older than Nimmo.
00:04:59Uh, and so he's an elder statesman baseball-wise, we would say there.
00:05:03Do any of those things concern you?
00:05:06Yes, you were losing some offensive production, but I think we all would understand that Simeon
00:05:10is the better defensive player right now, despite him being older.
00:05:14Are you concerned with losing the offensive production that you had from Brandon Nimmo?
00:05:18Or is this just a sign that, hey, the Mets can get better defensively up the middle
00:05:22at second and replace that offensive production as they're going to try to revamp this outfield
00:05:26because now they need a center fielder and a left fielder.
00:05:29So does any of the concerns on the other side for folks who don't like this trade because
00:05:32they say you're losing all the offense that you had from Brandon Nimmo?
00:05:35How do you respond to that?
00:05:37Yeah, I totally understand Mets fans being concerned about this.
00:05:41And I posted a tweet probably about five minutes before we went on the air saying that my biggest
00:05:46concern was that Brandon Nimmo was a really good clutch player.
00:05:52He batted 310 with runners in scoring position.
00:05:55And we all know how the Mets struggled to score with runners in scoring position all season long
00:06:01to lose that bat on top of possibly losing Pete Alonzo.
00:06:05Now the Mets, on top of having to get a top ace pitcher, having to either replace Edwin Diaz
00:06:11or bring him back and retool the bullpen, now have to add two bats in the order.
00:06:17This is going to be a tall, tough task for David Stearns this offseason.
00:06:20But that is probably my biggest concern is losing that that clutch ability that that
00:06:27Brandon Nimmo had that I think that is a good point.
00:06:31And I just want to go to the money for everyone here because Anthony brought it up before Simeon
00:06:37is owed $72 million over the next three seasons.
00:06:40Brandon Nimmo, as you heard Anthony mentioned before, he's owed 102 and a half million dollars
00:06:47over the next five seasons.
00:06:48So the Mets get off some larger money off the books sooner here.
00:06:52So there is also financial incentive for the Mets too.
00:06:55Now, the point you mentioned, Anthony, it all matters how they reinvest that, right?
00:06:59How do they reinvest this year and replace that production that they had from Brandon Nimmo?
00:07:04And I think that takes us to the next place that a lot of Mets fans are going to wonder
00:07:08and they're going to say, okay, well, what are you going to do in center field?
00:07:12Who should the Mets go after in center field?
00:07:14Is it a Cody Bellinger?
00:07:15Or is it trading for Luis Robert Jr.?
00:07:17And then what do you do in left field?
00:07:19Have you thought about any options for that, Anthony, and what you maybe think the Mets
00:07:22should do in terms of revamping their outfield and who they're going to put next to Juan Soto?
00:07:29Yeah, the best option here is to, and I'm sorry to say this, Yankee, is probably go after
00:07:35Cody Bellinger.
00:07:36He's one of the best outfielders in the game.
00:07:39He'll be good in center field.
00:07:40He could play first base if they don't bring back Pete Alonso.
00:07:43So when we were talking about, you know, how we were going to do the episode before this
00:07:48and talking about defense, that was the name that came to mind was Cody Bellinger.
00:07:53He kills two birds with one stone, being able to play center field, being able to play first
00:07:57base.
00:07:57I think we lost Anthony here.
00:08:13I'm not able to hear Anthony anymore.
00:08:15He might have froze up a little bit.
00:08:16We'll wait to see if we get Anthony back.
00:08:19I wanted to check what some folks were saying in the chat.
00:08:21A lot of you with very different reactions to this trade.
00:08:26And one of the things that should be noted, this was a trade that had to be approved by
00:08:32Brandon Nemo because he had his no trade clause.
00:08:35He waived his no trade clause to go to Texas.
00:08:38Now, a lot of people know his boy, Jacob DeGrom, now down there in Texas, former Met.
00:08:43So we know that.
00:08:45And he was able to waive it and go there.
00:08:47I'm seeing mixed reactions here in the chat from fans on this.
00:08:50Some of you like the trade.
00:08:53Mr. Gregory 322 says, sad day for the Mets and Mets fans.
00:08:56What a disgusting trade.
00:08:58Disgusting.
00:08:59That's pretty harsh there in terms of disgusting.
00:09:02Do we have Anthony back?
00:09:03We do have Anthony back.
00:09:04All right.
00:09:04So Anthony is back with us.
00:09:06We will bring him back in the point that he was making.
00:09:09Anthony, you're back with me.
00:09:10I'm glad you got everything worked out.
00:09:12Please continue with the point you were making about Cody Bellinger.
00:09:15Yeah, like I was saying, I think that him in center field is probably the best defensive option outside of, you know, Tyrone Taylor is a great defensive player, but he's not going to provide you much of offense there.
00:09:26So if they get a guy like Cody Bellinger, obviously he could play center field.
00:09:31He could get reps at first base as well.
00:09:33They decide not to bring back Pete Alonzo.
00:09:35So, um, and that's if David Stearns wants to continue going this defensive route that he's, he's trying to do by bringing in Marcus Simeon.
00:09:44So maybe it's to, to make the defense stronger up the middle with Marcus Simeon, uh, as well as Francisco Lindor and a guy like Cody Bellinger on, on top of that, the Mets themselves.
00:09:56And I think David Stearns mentioned this during the GM meetings, the, the players have to play better defense.
00:10:02The ones that are on this team.
00:10:03I mean, Lindor was not great last season at shortstop.
00:10:06There's, there was a lot of struggle with, with a lot of these guys defensively.
00:10:09We know the deficiencies that Han Soto has in right field.
00:10:12So the Mets have a lot of work that needs to be done this off season.
00:10:16Uh, it's going to be a very interesting off season and how David Stearns puts this team together because they should be a playoff team at the very least.
00:10:25Uh, there's no reason that they shouldn't be.
00:10:27They need to get a lot of things done and hopefully Stearns is up to the task because, uh, Mets fans aren't going to be happy if they don't get it done.
00:10:36No, I think you and I, Anthony, we talked about this in the off season.
00:10:38We've talked about this on several shows.
00:10:40We knew this was a big off season for the Mets here and on Stearns.
00:10:45And I think a lot of fans said, look, I don't want to see small market Stearns here.
00:10:49I don't want to see nickel and diming.
00:10:50I don't want to see bargain basement shopping.
00:10:53This is not what they want to see.
00:10:54And I don't think it's necessarily about spending the money, right?
00:10:56But getting players that can fit winning players here.
00:10:59When you make a move like this and you trade a homegrown guy, and I'm going to speak to this because I understand this is the case for some fans.
00:11:06A lot of fans have attachment to homegrown guys, right?
00:11:10And it's tough when you move on from them.
00:11:12And this is going to be the case of Pete Alonzo as well, too.
00:11:16But when you move on from a homegrown guy like Brandon Nimmo, do you think this puts more pressure on David Stearns to produce this off season and bring in talent to this team that can get them back to the playoffs and be what they hope to be?
00:11:30Which is a World Series contender and try to narrow that gap between themselves and the Dodgers.
00:11:34I honestly think he keeps adding more pressure on himself.
00:11:37I mean, there was enough pressure that this team that made it to within two games of the World Series in 2024, not only completely missed making the postseason, but had one of, you know, an epic fail to end the season.
00:11:51Could not win one game in Miami to make it in and let the Reds get in.
00:11:58There's a lot of pressure in there.
00:11:59There's a lot of pressure on him to get this team back to the postseason and be consistent.
00:12:04I mean, it's every other year with this team and sometimes even longer.
00:12:08They need to be consistently in the postseason.
00:12:11I will say this about this deal is that, you know, there was a lot of talk about it would be impossible to trade Brandon Nimmo's contract.
00:12:20They're not going to be able to get rid of this contract, and he just did.
00:12:23He just was able to get rid of the contract, which, let's be fair, it's not going to end well.
00:12:29I mean, I love Brandon Nimmo.
00:12:31Yes, he's a homegrown player, but we saw the writing on the wall with how he was playing in the outfield.
00:12:37His body is not going to hold up in left field.
00:12:40He was signed to play as a center fielder, like I said earlier, and then they moved him to left field within one year, and you can see him struggle.
00:12:49Struggle to get routes on the ball.
00:12:51You know, he can't really throw.
00:12:53What are you going to do with a guy like that, you know, two or three years down the line?
00:12:56He's going to have to become a DH.
00:12:58He's a very good hitter, and that's probably going to be what's best for him.
00:13:01This is a guy that was leading off for us for a long time.
00:13:03Getting rid of this contract is huge for the future of this team, and it takes away some money that is going to be so heavily invested in him to now they'll get rid of the contract for Simeon within a couple years.
00:13:19So, I know Mets fans are upset about it.
00:13:22You know, I'm not saying that I don't love Brandon Nimmo.
00:13:26I thought he was a great Met, and I think that they will struggle without him offensively.
00:13:32But defensively, which is what Stearns has been talking about all offseason, he did what he said he was going to do, and he made this more of a defensive team.
00:13:39And the Mets did, we talked about the Mets absolutely needed to get better defensively.
00:13:45I think when you look at Simeon and what he can bring defensively, and this is where I want to go next, among qualified second baseman in 2025, he was tied for the fifth best OAA outs above average there.
00:13:55So, that's really good from him.
00:13:58I understand the bat is not what Brandon Nimmo's is, but how do you see Simeon fitting into this lineup, and are you excited about what he can bring defensively up the middle?
00:14:10With him at second, and Francisco Lindor short.
00:14:12As much as I'm excited for a little bit of change in the lineup, he is 35 years old.
00:14:20Like, that's, you know, he's getting older.
00:14:22I don't know how great his defense is going to be.
00:14:25You know, he had an injury season last year.
00:14:28This is, like, I'm not going to say that this is a rosy deal, because, you know, it's not.
00:14:33This was more to move on from Nimmo's contract.
00:14:35That's the biggest thing.
00:14:37Nimmo's contract and defense.
00:14:38That's the biggest thing to come out of this.
00:14:40And I do have concerns defensively with a guy that's 35 years old.
00:14:44Like, you know, at some point, I said Nimmo's body's breaking down.
00:14:48I mean, at some point, Simeon's body could break down, too.
00:14:50It could be in this Mets team.
00:14:52So, you know, the Mets are taking a gamble here.
00:14:54I just hope that, you know, Simeon brings a little bit more offense than he did last year and is a more capable second baseman than the guys that we had, which was that rotating guys of McNeil and Beatty.
00:15:10And you want to throw Mauricio out there.
00:15:13Luis Angelicuna, too.
00:15:14He couldn't hit at all.
00:15:15So, if he can be better than that group of players, I think that's for the best.
00:15:21I do think that could be pretty good.
00:15:25And the other thing I will think about, I've thought about here, too, Anthony, is, and we'll put a bow on this, but when you look at this trade with Simeon, and I do have some concerns about him with his age, but I do think you're right.
00:15:37I think you hit the nail on the head.
00:15:38This is a deal that is about moving off of Brandon Nimmo, his long-term contract, his money, especially with his injury history and his body breaking out.
00:15:46Now, I wonder if this is a situation where the Mets could then look at Simeon, and depending on how he produces this year, do they then themselves maybe sell low on him and, you know, push him elsewhere, maybe try to get younger at second base down the road?
00:15:59Is he just sort of a stopgap?
00:16:00He feels like a stopgap at his age this year, but it's just, I wonder how soon could they maybe flip and turn it around?
00:16:08I guess the thing I'll also add with this is, what do you then think this means for Jeff McNeil, and do you think the Mets move on from him, and what do you think the market, is there really a market for Jeff McNeil, who honestly hasn't hit the ball that well in about three seasons?
00:16:23Yeah, his biggest attribute is that he's a utility guy, and you can move him anywhere around in the order, you can move him anywhere in the infield or outfield.
00:16:33That's the biggest thing for Jeff McNeil.
00:16:34I think that he's next on the move.
00:16:37I don't see us getting that much from him.
00:16:40Maybe if they could get a relief pitcher or something, maybe that would be great, but he was another guy that's been talked about all offseason about being on the trade block, and we just heard about Brandon Nimmo, what, last week?
00:16:52And now he's got it.
00:16:53I think Jeff McNeil will be on the move as well, and the Mets are, I don't know if it was Will Salmon.
00:16:59Someone had posted that the Mets are looking, and maybe it was Jeff Passan, that the Mets were looking to kind of shake up the core.
00:17:05I can't quote who exactly said that, but they were looking to shake up the core, and the main core for such a long time was Brandon Nimmo, Jeff McNeil, and Pete Alonso.
00:17:16Right now, Brandon Nimmo's gone.
00:17:18Pete Alonso's a free agent.
00:17:19And I assume that at some point this offseason, they're going to move on from Jeff McNeil.
00:17:25It will be interesting to see how much they shake up this core.
00:17:28We have a lot more to talk about with this trade for the Mets.
00:17:31Brandon Nimmo headed to Texas.
00:17:34Marcus Simeon headed here to New York.
00:17:37That is Anthony Rivera of the Subway to Shea podcast.
00:17:40Check him out there.
00:17:41Anthony, we had a whole other plan.
00:17:43We were supposed to do a Thanksgiving-themed episode today.
00:17:46I had my list ready.
00:17:47I had everything ready to go.
00:17:48It was going to be a fun episode.
00:17:51Well, maybe we'll shift that to something else where Anthony will be back on with me to do that down the road.
00:17:56But news breaks, and you're in the game too, and we all have to be on top of it.
00:18:02So I appreciate you coming on with me, my friend.
00:18:04We switched some plans, but we still were able to have a conversation about the Mets,
00:18:07and we'll see what else they do throughout this offseason.
00:18:09So thank you.
00:18:10Dexter, it's always a pleasure, man.
00:18:12Thank you so much.
00:18:13Anytime, anytime.
00:18:14Once again, check out Anthony Rivera.
00:18:15Great podcast.
00:18:16Subway to Shea podcast.
00:18:17One of my favorites in terms of Mets content there.
00:18:20We've got a great show here, a live show.
00:18:22Thank you for rocking with us here on the New York Post Sports YouTube channel.
00:18:25Live reaction to the Mets trade of Brandon Nimmo for Marcus Simeon.
00:18:30John Heyman, our Mets insider and columnist.
00:18:33He will be joining us later in the show.
00:18:35I've got another John joining me.
00:18:37It's a party of Johns.
00:18:38John Sopanaro of the Till Mets Do Us Part.
00:18:41Till Mets Do Us Part.
00:18:42Excuse me.
00:18:43John Sopanaro of the Till Mets Podcast.
00:18:44Another one of my favorite Mets podcasts out there.
00:18:46He's here with me now to talk about this trade.
00:18:49John, what's going on, man?
00:18:50How you doing?
00:18:51What's up, Dexter?
00:18:52How you doing, man?
00:18:54I'm a little shocked, honestly.
00:18:57Okay.
00:18:57Well, let's start there.
00:18:59Because I was here in studio, and I was doing a Jets video, actually a Jets video we were doing,
00:19:05and then I saw the trade pop up from Jeff Passan, and I was, I will say this, I'm not shocked
00:19:12they moved on from Nimmo, and I had even talked about it myself, that maybe that should be a
00:19:16direction they should look at.
00:19:18Maybe I'm shocked about how soon it happened, especially because we saw reports of them
00:19:22shopping him just as early as last week.
00:19:25Um, so a little bit shocked, but I do think it's the right move.
00:19:30What was your initial reaction to this, besides being so much shocked?
00:19:34Okay, a couple things.
00:19:35One, Jeff Passan, don't miss, right?
00:19:37I mean, everybody criticized him.
00:19:40I mean, like, he's a guy who is known for breaking these kinds of stories, but when he put out
00:19:44sort of this, um, uh, thought process that he was being a little bit more speculative and
00:19:53that's not really his style, especially this time of year.
00:19:56And, you know, I think any criticism that went Jeff Passan's way is probably undeserved.
00:20:02And it definitely, you know, it came back and look, this guy knows what he's talking about.
00:20:06And if you ever had any doubts, maybe you should do away with those doubts.
00:20:09As far as shocked is concerned, my shock, it's that it happened.
00:20:13I talked about it on the show with my co-host, Ibi last week, and we said, look, we would
00:20:20move on from Brandon Nimmo.
00:20:21It's just very difficult to move on from Brandon Nimmo.
00:20:23He's overpaid in terms of years, not dollars.
00:20:27If his contract was the same exact contract that it is, but for three years, I think you
00:20:32could trade him.
00:20:32But at five years, it's probably not a movable deal.
00:20:36And then you have to eat some money.
00:20:37Let's just say 25, $30 million.
00:20:40So whoever you replace him with, even if it's big game hunting like Kyle Tucker, well, Kyle
00:20:46Tucker might sign a $400 million deal.
00:20:48Then you tack on 30 million that you're paying Brandon Nimmo to not be on your team.
00:20:52It just becomes this thing where I don't know if you can do the math and make that work.
00:20:58So I think it was the right thing to do.
00:21:00I think if you put sentimentality away for a second, the Mets got, the Mets will try now
00:21:07to get younger.
00:21:08The Mets moved away from $28 million in total contract.
00:21:13They went from a five-year contract to a three-year contract, and they got an elite defensive
00:21:17second baseman.
00:21:18He is not the hitter that Brandon Nimmo is at this point in their respective careers,
00:21:22but I think it opens up the door for them to do a lot more in the outfield and some other
00:21:27things.
00:21:27And I'm just shocked that they were able to do it.
00:21:31I thought for sure they'd have to eat money in order to move Brandon Nimmo.
00:21:35But what they did was they took on another team's salary that they didn't want in Marcus
00:21:40Simeon.
00:21:40So I guess it does make sense.
00:21:43Yeah, I do think that's a shocking part of it, that they did not have to eat any money
00:21:48at all here.
00:21:49And I guess there's an argument.
00:21:50You can look at this and say, the fact that they did that, that's a win, right?
00:21:56Because you just talked about how hard it would be to move a five-year contract to what
00:21:59Brandon Nimmo was making, and they didn't have to take on any money.
00:22:02This is a win.
00:22:03Now they've got flexibility to put in other places.
00:22:06And I just want to be clear.
00:22:07I'm not saying that's easy.
00:22:09There's a lot of work with that, right?
00:22:11The Mets have to hit.
00:22:11They have to either make good trades or sign the right guys.
00:22:15It's not that easy.
00:22:16Just saying, hey, we're going to put the money here.
00:22:17This is definitely going to work.
00:22:18But I guess I'll ask you this, too.
00:22:22And I had Anthony on before, and I asked him this as well.
00:22:25OK, this is where everybody goes.
00:22:28We could get to the minutia of this trade, and we know Simeon is not the offensive player
00:22:31that Brandon Nimmo is, but he's a better defensive player and all of that.
00:22:35Where would you like to see the Mets go next as they reshape this outfield and try to put
00:22:42two players they now have to next to Juan Soto?
00:22:45Where would you like to see them go this offseason, whether it be via free agency or trade?
00:22:50So there's a couple ways to answer this.
00:22:53I think big picture, this opens up a lot of avenues for them.
00:22:56I caught the tail end of your conversation with Anthony when I first jumped in, and I
00:23:02think Jeff McNeil is gone.
00:23:03I think it's a foregone conclusion that at some point he will be traded.
00:23:07So that's just another piece off of the roster that's going to give them a little bit more
00:23:12flexibility.
00:23:13I think it also opens up the door to make Jet Williams available in a bigger deal, whether
00:23:22it's for a starting pitcher or for an outfielder or whatever the case may be.
00:23:26This is a guy who's one of the better prospects in baseball, certainly one of the better prospects
00:23:30in the Mets system.
00:23:31He's a prospect a lot of Mets fans like, and you never want to see those guys go.
00:23:36But I think this is the kind of situation where you say, well, the Mets do have Marcus
00:23:40Simeon for the next three years.
00:23:42Now, maybe he's a DH in a year or two.
00:23:44Maybe he's playing third base.
00:23:46Who knows?
00:23:47But I do think it opens up the potential to make some kind of a blockbuster trade with
00:23:53Jet Williams included in the mix.
00:23:56And so part of that is, I think when you look at it, you have to look at what they want
00:24:01to do in the outfield.
00:24:02Again, Brandon Nimmo, very good player.
00:24:04It's clear that he's lost the step even for left field.
00:24:07The Mets tolerate what Juan Soto does in right field because he's Juan Soto.
00:24:13But we saw how that team took a massive hit by putting Jeff McNeil in center field and
00:24:19having him flanked by the likes of Brandon Nimmo and Juan Soto.
00:24:22They wanted to get better defensively.
00:24:24They needed to get better defensively.
00:24:26And it's kind of hard to do that when you have Nimmo locked in one corner while he's being
00:24:30paid like a center fielder and an elite one at that and Juan Soto locked into the other
00:24:35one.
00:24:36So what I would like to see them do, and I don't know if this is pie in the sky.
00:24:41I have no idea.
00:24:42But there was a lot of talk even in the past, an article about Kyle Tucker potentially being
00:24:50of interest to the Mets.
00:24:51There's been this kind of thing thrown out there that maybe Fernando Tatis Jr.
00:24:56might be available from a Padres team that needs to get out of money.
00:25:00And the only contract they can really trade is Tatis Jr.
00:25:03And they're looking to sell the team.
00:25:06I think that's where the Mets might be leaning is something massive.
00:25:11Tucker, Tatis.
00:25:12Sure, it could be Bellinger too, and I would be happy with that.
00:25:15But I think when you look at the Mets plan, they've got Juan Soto, who's now 27 years old.
00:25:21I think they'd like to pair him with a comparably aged superstar.
00:25:25Kyle Tucker is 28.
00:25:26Tatis Jr. is 26, I think.
00:25:30So you're looking at somebody, two players, that can be your core once Francisco Lindor
00:25:36is a little bit older.
00:25:37And whether or not they bring back Pete, who knows.
00:25:39But if they do bring back Pete on, let's say, a three-year deal, that's not going to matter
00:25:43in year six of the Soto contract.
00:25:46So I think the Mets are doing this move.
00:25:48I know they got older because Simeon is older than Brandon Nimmo.
00:25:50But I think they're doing it to try to get younger, trying to get more athletic in that
00:25:54outfield spot, and to pair Soto with somebody who is more his peer, age-wise, so that they
00:26:00can be the ones who are the Batman and Robin of this team in, I don't know, three or four
00:26:06years.
00:26:06So I find all that interesting that you said, and I think that's the thing that the Mets
00:26:11fans are going to want to know.
00:26:12And this is the thing when deals are made, right?
00:26:14John, you don't know what the next move is.
00:26:17Everybody's going to want to know what the next move is.
00:26:18But that's the beauty of it.
00:26:19And why we do this to sports fans is that we don't know what that move is.
00:26:23I wonder if the Mets do what you said or just are opportunistic to swing big, is what
00:26:29I will say.
00:26:29I wonder how that affects the Pete Alonso negotiations.
00:26:32Does he come back?
00:26:33Is he part of their plans?
00:26:34And the Mets are showing here to not necessarily have an attachment to or have any sentimentality
00:26:41here, right, with Brandon Nemo as a homegrown player.
00:26:44And look, this is a new front office with David Stearns.
00:26:47This is not a player he brought up through the farm system.
00:26:50So he's not going to have those attachments.
00:26:52So it is going to be interesting to see what they do.
00:26:55I do want to ask you something about Marcus Simeon here, John.
00:26:58Before I do, we got to shout out your co-host here, Ibby, in the chat.
00:27:04Yes.
00:27:04Who, uh, Ibby says that, he says, I got to vet these guests, man.
00:27:08He says, you're a character.
00:27:09I don't know.
00:27:10I don't know if I'm supposed to have you on.
00:27:11I got to vet the guests here.
00:27:12That's, that's good.
00:27:13Shout out to Ibby, man.
00:27:14Shout out to Ibby.
00:27:16Uh, we appreciate that.
00:27:17I, I think a lot of fans would love the Tatis move.
00:27:19Like you said, I want to get back to some other moves in a second, but let me ask you
00:27:23this in terms of Marcus Simeon.
00:27:25And I talked with Anthony about what he brings on the defensive end, even still at his age
00:27:31of 35.
00:27:32Do you have concerns about his limitations on offense?
00:27:36Uh, two 30 hitter last year.
00:27:39Do you have your concerns about him and his limitations on offense and where he can fit
00:27:43in this Mets lineup?
00:27:44Which to be fair, we don't know exactly how it's going to look based on other moves they
00:27:48might make.
00:27:48But do you have any concerns about him offensively?
00:27:51Yeah.
00:27:52I mean, I think it's fair to have concerns about him offensively.
00:27:54He's going to average about $25 million over the next three years.
00:27:58That's a lot of money.
00:27:59That's being paid like a top tier hitter, which he once was.
00:28:02Um, I know the bat speed is down in addition to some of the numbers that you just shouted
00:28:07out from last year.
00:28:08And he looks like a guy who might be a bit on the decline over the last two seasons
00:28:13or so.
00:28:14So there's definitely concern there, but I think you can offset some of the numbers that
00:28:18the concern with a few things.
00:28:19One, you mentioned he's an elite second baseman still, and it's like elite in capital letters
00:28:25underlined.
00:28:26He's still that good.
00:28:27And I think that's really important now for a Mets team that struggled on defense, that
00:28:33should be very important to any Mets fan.
00:28:36That's listening to this and watching it.
00:28:38I know everybody gets excited about the offense and what a team of what a player can bring
00:28:42offensively.
00:28:43That's also a big part of it, right?
00:28:44You can't win if you don't score runs.
00:28:46I get it.
00:28:46But defense up the middle is crucial.
00:28:49Now you have Lindor and Simeon, and those are two elite defenders playing next to each
00:28:54other.
00:28:55Uh, you can't just sweep that under the rug as if it's nothing.
00:28:58As far as the offense is concerned too, he's a guy who pulls a lot of fly balls and pulling
00:29:05fly balls is a way to have success as a guy who's got some pop.
00:29:09And I know again, his, his power numbers have declined, but most baseball players, major
00:29:15leagues, minor leagues, rec league, little league, it doesn't matter.
00:29:19Most players are successful.
00:29:20When you pull balls in the air, more people have more power to their pull side than they
00:29:25do going the other way.
00:29:27And so I think there are some things here that wouldn't necessarily surprise me.
00:29:32You know, he had, I think like a two war season in, uh, 2025.
00:29:36If he rebounded a little bit offensively and he kept that elite defense, I could see him
00:29:42being a three, three and a half war player.
00:29:44If he ever got to four, that's a, that's a very good regular again.
00:29:48And I don't think that's insane.
00:29:50A couple of years ago, he was a six war player.
00:29:51I don't think he'll ever get back to that, but I think the defense is going to skew what
00:29:56he does in totality.
00:29:58And I also think, I think we talked about it this the last time I was on the show, the
00:30:02bottom of the Mets order was more the problem, not the top of the Mets order.
00:30:07Brandon Nimmo, Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, and Pete Alonso all did their jobs and they did
00:30:11it very well.
00:30:12So if you're going to replace Brandon Nimmo with Marcus Simeon, it's going to seem like on the
00:30:17surface, your offense is taking a hit.
00:30:19But again, if the replacement truly is Kyle Tucker, or if it's ever Fernando Tatis Jr.
00:30:25And Marcus Simeon is batting seventh.
00:30:28Now, all of a sudden it starts to make a lot more sense, which is why I think just keeping
00:30:32the bigger picture in mind is the most important thing for Mets fans.
00:30:35I know it's hard because it's an emotional day.
00:30:37Brandon Nimmo was drafted here.
00:30:39I said until Mets do his part that I just didn't think Nimmo would waive a no trade clause
00:30:44because this is a guy who had the opportunity to spend his whole career as a Met and maybe
00:30:50get his number up at Citi Field.
00:30:52And there's only one person who's ever done that.
00:30:54And it's David Wright.
00:30:55All the other retired numbers are guys who either left or got here later or whatever.
00:30:59So I, you know, I get the sentimentality, but I think you have to put that aside and you
00:31:04have to just look at what the Mets are trying to do and how they're trying to build in the
00:31:08future.
00:31:09Let, let me, let me throw a couple of quick things at you before we go.
00:31:12And then we're going to, we're bringing John Heyman.
00:31:15Um, when you look at the rest of this off season, this is really going to start to take
00:31:18shape for the Mets after this move.
00:31:21Do they, in your eyes, do they have to bring back Pete Alonzo and Edwin Diaz?
00:31:25Do both of those guys have to come back and be Mets in 2026?
00:31:28I love Pete Alonzo.
00:31:29Pete Alonzo is probably my irrational.
00:31:32Oh, no, John, John.
00:31:34I feel, I feel, I feel a buck coming.
00:31:36Once you started with that, I feel like a butt is coming.
00:31:38And go, I'm going to let you go.
00:31:39Go ahead.
00:31:40Okay.
00:31:40Um, I, I have, you know, a bunch of Mets jerseys in my closet.
00:31:44The only current player that I have in my closet is Pete Alonzo.
00:31:47That's where my attachment lies.
00:31:49I love Lindor.
00:31:49I love Soto, but you know, Pete Alonzo was my guy when he first came up.
00:31:53And so that's where my irrational attachment is.
00:31:55I do think Edwin Diaz is more important for the Mets to retain than Pete Alonzo, because
00:32:02I don't think there is a clear line in how you can replace Edwin Diaz on a team that's
00:32:09expected to be a playoff contender, a division winning contender, hopefully a world series
00:32:14contender.
00:32:14Those teams need closers.
00:32:16And you've got a little bit in the back end of the bullpen with AJ Minter coming back.
00:32:20Hopefully he's healthy.
00:32:21You've got Brooks Raley who had the option on his contract.
00:32:24You know, you start to get Edwin Diaz.
00:32:26If they ever did the other thing that was in the passing article, which is, you know,
00:32:30bring in Devin Williams and Edwin Diaz.
00:32:32Now you've got the makings of a great bullpen.
00:32:35So I think he's the one you have to retain.
00:32:38You never know if closers are going to be good year over year, but you also don't know which
00:32:42closers can perform in a market like New York.
00:32:45Edwin Diaz is the best closer in baseball still.
00:32:48I don't know if he will be at the end of a five-year contract.
00:32:50I don't think it matters.
00:32:51You pay, you have Steve Cohen's money, pay and go get the best player.
00:32:55The best player is Edwin Diaz.
00:32:57That's not to say that Alonzo is replaceable, but there is an opportunity.
00:33:02If you went out and signed Kyle Schwarber, well, you could replace Pete's numbers that way.
00:33:07You could also do something where maybe you combine, I don't know, Cody Bellinger with
00:33:13Alex Bregman or Cody Bellinger with Bo Bichette.
00:33:17Neither one of those guys is going to give you Pete's numbers, but they are going to
00:33:21give you better defense.
00:33:22They are going to give you, especially if Bo Bichette's not playing shortstop, which
00:33:25he wouldn't hear.
00:33:26They're going to give you defensive versatility.
00:33:28They're going to give you a lot of different things.
00:33:30So to me, you can kind of, you know, shape the dice and come out with a situation where
00:33:37the Mets are a better team without Pete Alonzo.
00:33:39I don't think there's any way the Mets can be a better team without Edwin Diaz.
00:33:44And, you know, that said, I would keep both of them, but I don't know.
00:33:49I don't know what they're going to do.
00:33:50I would keep both of them.
00:33:52Right.
00:33:52You want to keep both, but if you had to rank, you'd put Ed Diaz at the top and Alonzo right
00:33:56underneath in terms of importance of keeping.
00:33:58Slightly.
00:33:58We'll see.
00:33:59Slightly.
00:34:00Very slightly.
00:34:01We'll see how the rest of this offseason goes.
00:34:03It's got off to a spectacular, shocking start.
00:34:06It's a word we use at the beginning of this conversation, John.
00:34:09We'll see how the, how the rest of it goes.
00:34:11Everybody.
00:34:12That is John Sapanauer.
00:34:13Check him and Ibi who was in the chat.
00:34:15We appreciate you.
00:34:15Ibi check out their podcast till Mets do us part podcast, fantastic podcast covering
00:34:20the Mets.
00:34:21I still have to get both you guys on at the same time that has to happen.
00:34:24So we're going to make that happen.
00:34:25John, I appreciate you.
00:34:26I hit you with the bat signal last minute and you came through.
00:34:29So I appreciate you, bro.
00:34:31Anytime, man.
00:34:31It's always easier three hours earlier on the West coast anyway.
00:34:34So thanks for having me on.
00:34:35This, this is true.
00:34:36I forgot how much earlier it is for you out there.
00:34:39It's been a long late day for me, but be well, man.
00:34:42We'll talk soon, my friend.
00:34:44Take it easy.
00:34:45All right.
00:34:45Check out John Sapanauer.
00:34:46As I said, again, on the till Mets do us part podcast.
00:34:50We're not done here on this live reaction.
00:34:52Mets show Mets trading Brandon Nimmo from Marcus Simeon.
00:34:55A lot of reaction.
00:34:56I see a lot of you in the chat with a lot of good questions, comments.
00:35:01We appreciate everybody for checking in on this live edition of straight out of Flushing,
00:35:05but I've got another guest joining me.
00:35:07He is our baseball columnist here at the New York post.
00:35:11He's had a lot to tweet about on this trade.
00:35:14The great John Heyman joins me now.
00:35:17John, how you doing, man?
00:35:18I'm good.
00:35:19How are you, Dexter?
00:35:20I'm doing good.
00:35:21I'm doing good.
00:35:22A hot stove is heating up, man.
00:35:23A hot stove is heating up already.
00:35:25John, let me ask you this.
00:35:26You know, you're always plugged in and you see all these deals.
00:35:30Was this deal a shocking one to you?
00:35:32Was this a shocking deal for you?
00:35:34The Mets trading Brandon Nimmo?
00:35:35I'm not going to say shocking.
00:35:36There have been hints, you know, starting at the very end of the season.
00:35:40Obviously, it was a disastrous season for the Mets.
00:35:42Nobody expected the Reds to be able to beat out the Mets for that final playoff spot.
00:35:47Last three and a half months were very bad.
00:35:49But from the end of the season on, there were some hints.
00:35:53You know, I kind of thought they probably were going to hold on to Nimmo.
00:35:56But they needed to be more right-handed.
00:35:58They needed to have better defense.
00:36:00And this is a step in that direction.
00:36:04Certainly, they're losing offense here.
00:36:06Nimmo is one of their better hitters.
00:36:08Beloved figure.
00:36:09Take the emotion out of it, though.
00:36:11And it does make sense.
00:36:12On paper, it makes sense what the Mets did.
00:36:16Yeah, I think it does make a lot of sense.
00:36:18And the fact that the Mets didn't have to eat any of this money.
00:36:21Marcus Simeon, a guy who's a fantastic defender, still at the age of 35.
00:36:26How do you like his fit into this Mets culture and lineup?
00:36:31Well, you know, I think Nimmo was great in the clubhouse.
00:36:34And Simeon is great in his own way.
00:36:36A very serious guy.
00:36:38Holds everybody accountable up until this year.
00:36:41Basically, he played every game for several years.
00:36:44You know, he's a guy who plays hurt.
00:36:46Now, he missed some games this year for the first time, but in quite a while.
00:36:51You know, he's a very serious guy who's, you know, really emphasizes winning.
00:36:58So, I mean, I think both guys are clubhouse pluses, but in their own way.
00:37:02Yeah.
00:37:03As far as the money goes, I mean, I think the money works.
00:37:06Nimmo, you know, someone might say he had a year too long on there.
00:37:10But, you know, at $20 million a year with his production, 25 home runs, 92 RBIs, I think
00:37:17he's worth about his contract.
00:37:20And the same for Simeon.
00:37:22Obviously, only 15 home runs last year in the injury year for Simeon.
00:37:26Had 45 four years previously, but still an outstanding defensive player.
00:37:32I think he was affected by his injury a little bit last year, and he'll be better.
00:37:36And I think he's worth about his contract, too.
00:37:39I think for Texas, they wanted to get down in terms of the payout per year, right?
00:37:47And Nimmo makes less per year, and the Mets are sending $5 million, my understanding.
00:37:52Yeah, you had tweeted about that.
00:37:54The Mets sending $5 million to the Texas Rangers with this deal and the swap for both players.
00:37:59David Stearns, John, has talked, and he talked at the GM meetings.
00:38:04He talked about wanting to improve this Mets team defensively.
00:38:07This is a move that seems to address that, and he's been about his word on that.
00:38:13Are there any players you're looking at that the Mets could target in free agency to sort
00:38:18of rebuild that outfield, and that fits into what they want to do with still being good
00:38:22defensively while also trying to replace some of the production that Brandon Nimmo had
00:38:26that is going out the door?
00:38:27Well, this won't help them in terms of right-handed versus left-handed, but we have reported that
00:38:33they are interested in Cody Bellinger, who had an outstanding defensive year, a five-war
00:38:38season.
00:38:40He was excellent for the Yankees, obviously a proven New York player.
00:38:44He is the Yankees' number one priority, though.
00:38:46So, I mean, the Mets obviously were able to get Juan Soto by out-paying the Yankees and
00:38:52obviously giving him the suite and all that, but I don't know that they're going to be
00:38:57able to get Bellinger, but that's certainly a guy on their radar.
00:39:01I would think Harrison Badar should be on their radar because he had an outstanding season
00:39:06with Minnesota and Philly last year.
00:39:08It didn't appear that the Mets made a move for him at the deadline, and he certainly would
00:39:12have helped.
00:39:13I mean, you've got to figure he would have given them one extra win when Cedric Mullins did
00:39:17not play well at all for the Mets, but they didn't want to bring him back, and I don't
00:39:22know if that'll change now, but he was outstanding for the Phillies and was just a Mets killer.
00:39:26So, I mean, he's right-handed.
00:39:28He's an outstanding defender in center.
00:39:31If they brought back, if they brought in Bader and Bellinger, they'd be terrific in center
00:39:35and in left and have overall a very good defensive outfield.
00:39:39But, you know, that outfield market is pretty slim right now, and we'll see what they do.
00:39:46Obviously, they're going to need to trade McNeil at this point.
00:39:48He's out of a position.
00:39:49I think we understood that going in, that he was on the block.
00:39:53That much we did know.
00:39:54So, they've got a lot more moves to do, and of course, the top two moves that they need
00:39:59to do, one and 1A, are to bring back Pete Alonzo.
00:40:02They can't lose that right-handed bat, and Edwin Diaz, who's one of the two or three best
00:40:06closers in baseball right now, they're covered as bare as far as right-handed relievers.
00:40:12They have basically Oscar Brazoban, and that's about it.
00:40:16So, they certainly need to bring back Diaz.
00:40:19If they don't, they're really going to need to bulk up in that bullpen to make up for it.
00:40:25Well, I'm glad you went there, John, because I want to ask about that.
00:40:28You said how it's imperative it is for them to bring back Alonzo and Diaz.
00:40:33How does that work for the Mets, or is this a challenge for them, more for David Stearns
00:40:37and company, when it comes down to negotiating?
00:40:39Because the agents of these players, Scott Boris being the agent of Pete Alonzo, they
00:40:45know that the Mets need them.
00:40:46So, are the Mets at a disadvantage where they're going to have to shut out the big bucks to
00:40:50get this done sooner rather than later?
00:40:52Well, free agency is difficult, and obviously Diaz had a fantastic year.
00:40:56Alonzo had an excellent year, and they have other suitors.
00:40:59Certainly, Toronto is looking for a closer.
00:41:02I think Baltimore is as well.
00:41:04Detroit, probably looking for a closer.
00:41:06Diaz may be a little rich for them, but there is going to be competition for Diaz.
00:41:10As far as Alonzo goes, Boston is looking for a right-handed bat.
00:41:14Baltimore, I think, even though they gave Mountcastle a contract, I think they'd like
00:41:18to bring in Alonzo, so he's got some suitors as well.
00:41:23You know, it's not easy, but I do believe both guys have said they love being a Met, and
00:41:29I do believe that they do love being a Met, and, you know, they certainly have the wherewithal
00:41:34to do it, so, you know, I'm still going to be slightly surprised if either one of them
00:41:39leaves, but in free agency, you know, anything can happen.
00:41:43We know that.
00:41:44Anything can happen at all.
00:41:45You mentioned McNeil before and that, you know, his time here in New York is likely over.
00:41:50What do you think the market is for McNeil?
00:41:52What could the Mets actually get for him?
00:41:54He's a guy who's not hit well over the last couple of seasons.
00:41:57What could the Mets get for McNeil on the open market?
00:42:00Yeah, McNeil showed some versatility last year.
00:42:02He was decent in centerfield, so he can play the outfield in a pinch, certainly can play
00:42:07the corners.
00:42:08He was decent at second base, at least if you look at the metrics, it was about even, so
00:42:13it was not bad, but certainly Semien is going to be much better.
00:42:17That's why the Mets did it.
00:42:19I know I think he is tradable at this point.
00:42:21He does have $17.75 million to go for one year, so the Mets would have to offset that
00:42:25a bit.
00:42:27You know, if I think Nimmo's worth $20 million, I don't think McNeil's worth $17.75 million,
00:42:33he's worth a bit less than that, but I think at this point there are teams that would be
00:42:37happy to have his offense.
00:42:38You know what?
00:42:39He did hit well last year up until the final few weeks where we had an injury, just did
00:42:44have surgery.
00:42:46I don't know how that will impact the trade.
00:42:48They do think he's going to be ready for spring training.
00:42:51You know, I do think that he was having a decent season up until, as I said, the last
00:42:55few weeks when the injury impacted him and prevented him from hitting like he can.
00:43:00But he's a decent offensive player.
00:43:02He's obviously won a batting title and only has one year to go, which is always a good
00:43:06selling point.
00:43:07It is a good selling point there.
00:43:09Now, John, you and I talked, I think the last time we really, really talked was around
00:43:12the trade deadline.
00:43:13And we would like some of the moves that Mets made, and then those did not pan out well.
00:43:17And we saw how the season ended for the Mets.
00:43:20Now, David Stearns makes this move, moving on from Brandon Nimmo.
00:43:25Do you think this move, because some of the fan base, and we're seeing this in the chat,
00:43:29some of the fan base, they're not happy with this move at all whatsoever.
00:43:33But do you think this move here to start the offseason, do you think this puts more pressure
00:43:37on David Stearns to get things right and get the Mets back towards being a contender here
00:43:42in 2026?
00:43:43Yeah, I think there's a lot of pressure on David Stearns.
00:43:45Being a general manager in New York, the pressure was immense to begin with.
00:43:49Obviously, he did not have the year in his second year that he had in his first year.
00:43:53It seemed like everything went right in that first year.
00:43:55They had that kind of magical run in the playoffs, took the Dodgers to six games in the NLCS.
00:44:00It was an outstanding season, unexpected.
00:44:03This year was unexpected in the wrong way.
00:44:06Obviously, the two best moves were to bring back Alonso and to sign Soto.
00:44:11They performed.
00:44:12Those felt more like Steve Cohen's moves.
00:44:15So David Stearns had a rough winter last year, obviously.
00:44:18Montas was a complete bust.
00:44:21Mania has got two more years to go, but he certainly did not perform in year one of that
00:44:25$75 million deal.
00:44:27And the moves at the deadline did not work.
00:44:30No matter what our opinions may have been on that day, Cedric Mullins was terrible and
00:44:35Helsley, who I think is a very good pitcher and will do well in free agency, somehow got
00:44:40killed every time he pitched.
00:44:42I mean, it was unbelievable.
00:44:43The guy throwing 101 miles an hour.
00:44:45I don't know if he was tipping or what, but it did not work.
00:44:48So the moves were not good in the winter and they were even worse in the summer.
00:44:53And obviously, there was pressure on a guy who was one of the top two paid GMs in baseball
00:44:58or baseball president, as we say.
00:45:02No longer a GM, baseball president.
00:45:04Baseball president.
00:45:04Got to get that title right, John.
00:45:06I got to make sure we have that title right for him.
00:45:08A lot of Mets fans are going to want to know about what the market could be for them in
00:45:12terms of adding an ace.
00:45:14There seems a lot of Mets fans saying, hey, we want to see this team get an ace.
00:45:17Is it likely the Mets get themselves an ace this season?
00:45:21Can they trade for an ace?
00:45:22How likely do you think it is?
00:45:24Or is that even a priority for David Stearns and company?
00:45:27Oh, yeah.
00:45:28I mean, I think it is.
00:45:29You know, adding an ace is not easy.
00:45:31I mean, Scooble is the one clear ace that could be out there.
00:45:34And I think, you know, they'll probably gauge the interest around the league in Scooble.
00:45:39I still think it's a surprise if Derek Scooble is traded.
00:45:44So there's one ace.
00:45:45And, you know, if he is traded, he's going to go to one other team.
00:45:49So it could be anybody.
00:45:50The other guys are, I wouldn't exactly call them aces.
00:45:54There are, I would say, three very good pitchers who at the best may be an ace.
00:45:58Frambo Valdez, Dylan Cease, and then, of course, Tatsuya Imai from Japan.
00:46:04And the Mets are certainly going to look at all of them and, you know, certainly could bring
00:46:09in one of them.
00:46:10I would look at them more as probably number two type starters, but certainly front end
00:46:14pitchers and would certainly improve the team quite a bit.
00:46:19But in terms of an ace, you know, maybe I'm stingy in my definition of ace, but I think
00:46:24Tarek Scooble is the only game in town.
00:46:25And that's a tough one to get.
00:46:28That's, that's a no, no, no.
00:46:29I think it's fine to be stingy on that.
00:46:30We can't call everybody an ace, right?
00:46:32Just because the best pitcher on the team doesn't make you necessarily a bona fide ace.
00:46:35So I do agree with you on that.
00:46:38I guess to wrap things here, John, you talked about taking the emotion out of this when
00:46:43you're looking at this trade with Brandon Nimmo going to Texas and him waving his no
00:46:48trade clause and going, going to Texas.
00:46:50Now, overall, I got the sense from you, you feel like this is a good deal for the Mets.
00:46:54Do you feel like this is a good one for them?
00:46:55It's a logical deal.
00:46:56It's a good, it's an understandable first step.
00:46:59I'm sorry to see Brandon Nimmo go.
00:47:01He's beloved not only by the fans, but throughout the organization.
00:47:04Certainly, uh, sets them back offensively and makes it kind of almost imperative.
00:47:09They bring back, uh, Alonzo at this point, uh, if they do bring back Alonzo and add a
00:47:15comparable hitter in the outfield, or whether that be Bellinger or somebody else, uh, I think
00:47:19it's, it works out great.
00:47:20Uh, it makes sense to me because of the defense and the fact that Simeon is right-handed and
00:47:26Nimmo is left-handed.
00:47:28They were way too left-handed, right?
00:47:29So they need to get more right-handed and this is certainly a start.
00:47:32So I would say it's logical.
00:47:35I'm not going to call it a home run trade or anything like that, but it makes sense for
00:47:39a team that really was a disaster last year.
00:47:42And, you know, they can't come back and bring back the same team.
00:47:44You know, if their whole move is to have Diaz and Alonzo come back and, uh, you know, it's,
00:47:50it's the same team they had.
00:47:52So, uh, the narrative will be, uh, they brought back a disaster of a team.
00:47:56So, uh, I do think, uh, change makes sense.
00:47:59Uh, this is a start.
00:48:01I don't think we can grade it yet.
00:48:02It's too early.
00:48:03Let's see what they do in the rest of the off season.
00:48:06No, I agree.
00:48:07It's going to take some time before we can start grading the off season.
00:48:10I do like the word you use there.
00:48:11I do think it's a logical deal.
00:48:12I think that's fair to look at this and think that it's logical when you take the emotion
00:48:16out of it, even though the Mets fans are going to miss Brandon Nimmo for sure, but
00:48:20we'll see how it all pans out.
00:48:21So that everybody is John Haven, MLB columnist for us here at the New York Post doing a fantastic
00:48:27job all over this trade.
00:48:28John, I'm sure I'll talk to you a lot in the next month and, uh, we'll see what moves the
00:48:32Mets make down the road.
00:48:33Thank you so much.
00:48:33All right.
00:48:34Thank you, Dexter.
00:48:35Anytime, anytime.
00:48:36Once again, John Haven, check out his work here with us, New York Post, newyorkpost.com.
00:48:41Appreciate everybody rocking with us here in the chat.
00:48:44A lot of you have a lot of great comments, um, on, on this and all this, all this going
00:48:51on with this trade.
00:48:52Um, I see some of you, some of you guys saying, I don't know about this trade.
00:48:56Uh, I see Soto edits saying that, and listen, I understand if you're torn about this trade
00:49:04because you liked Brandon Nimmo.
00:49:06Um, I was texting a friend of mine who, you know, said, Hey, sad to see Nimmo go, but understands
00:49:12why this trade had to be made and I get it from the Mets standpoint.
00:49:15And I do think the Mets have to improve defensively.
00:49:18I think if you're a Mets fan, if you've been covering this team, you've been watching this
00:49:22team, you know, they had to get better defensively.
00:49:26We talked, Anthony Rivera talked about this.
00:49:28This was a weakness of the team.
00:49:30They've got to get better defensively.
00:49:31Now there's a lot we can talk about here.
00:49:34And I think it does put a lot of, and I understand it.
00:49:37I understand the anxiety that it's going to come for a lot of fans.
00:49:40It's like, okay, they made this move.
00:49:42They lost some offense.
00:49:44Simeon's not going to be the guy that can really do it for the team at the plate.
00:49:48What happens next?
00:49:50You got to wait and see.
00:49:52You have to try to trust Stearns.
00:49:54I understand for some of you that you lost your trust in Stearns, particularly with what
00:50:00happened at the deadline.
00:50:01Although I'm in agreement with John Heyman on this one.
00:50:04I thought the moves at the deadline were good.
00:50:06I really liked the moves at the deadline, but players have agency.
00:50:11Players have to execute.
00:50:12Those players didn't execute.
00:50:14Now, is that fully on Stearns?
00:50:17I'd say no.
00:50:19But here's the thing.
00:50:20When you're GM, president of baseball operations, you can't have, you only can have so many misses.
00:50:25John Heyman pointed out the miss with Frankie Montas, and we all know how that went.
00:50:29We all understand that.
00:50:31And I think there is pressure on the Mets to rebuild their pitching.
00:50:34Absolutely.
00:50:36But the moves they make in the next couple of weeks, how they choose to rebuild this
00:50:41outfield is going to be really, really important.
00:50:46As important as I will say, as bringing back Pete Alonzo, bringing back Edwin Diaz.
00:50:51I think both guys should come back.
00:50:53It'll be nice if both guys come back.
00:50:55I also agree with John Saponaro that Diaz is probably the more important of the two.
00:51:00Now, will both those contracts be great at the end?
00:51:01Probably not, but I do think that it's important to bring those guys back.
00:51:07And I do also think it's important that the Mets sort of showed that they were going to
00:51:10change the culture in terms of how defense was going to look on this team.
00:51:15Tough day.
00:51:16If you're a Brandon Nemo fan, you love Brandon Nemo here.
00:51:19I completely understand it.
00:51:22I understand it.
00:51:23But if you've watched, if you just really look at this logically and you look at the
00:51:26money he was being paid, which he was paid to be a center fielder, which he no longer
00:51:29was, and you looked at how he was in left field defensively and his body breaking down,
00:51:37I understand why the Mets have to make this move.
00:51:39Now, is Marcus Simeon the long-term answer at second base?
00:51:43No, I don't think so.
00:51:43And I think it'll be interesting to see how Ronnie Mauricio develops, how Acuna Jr.
00:51:50develops in all of that, how do they factor into that?
00:51:54Can they get better as players in that?
00:51:56I think that's going to be a factor.
00:51:57But I think to have a guy like Simeon who you heard from John Heyman is a good clubhouse
00:52:01leader, is a guy who should fit into this Mets culture as a no-nonsense guy, I think
00:52:07it'll be fine.
00:52:07I think the Mets will figure out down the road what they'll want to do at second base.
00:52:11I don't think Marcus Simeon is a long-term answer.
00:52:13But it'll be interesting.
00:52:15As far as free agents, sure.
00:52:17I think Cody Bellinger will be a nice move.
00:52:19Anthony and I were going to do a Thanksgiving episode and try to build some things around
00:52:23what we thought were good moves that the Mets could make to improve their team and close
00:52:28the gap on the Dodgers.
00:52:29Cody Bellinger was a guy I had high on that list.
00:52:33Now, it's a tough market.
00:52:35The Yankees, I'll tell you what, the Yankees and the Yankee fans, sure, do not, absolutely
00:52:40do not want to lose Cody Bellinger.
00:52:43Could you imagine if the Yankees lost two free agents in a row to the Mets back-to-back
00:52:48years?
00:52:49Whew, that'd be interesting.
00:52:51Now, I wish that, hey, it's good for us.
00:52:53I'd love to talk about it, but not good for the Yankee fans.
00:52:56That would be interesting.
00:52:57But I do think, overall, this is a good trade.
00:53:02How good is a strong word?
00:53:04I'm going to go with what John Heyman said.
00:53:05I'm going to regurgitate his word.
00:53:06I think it's logical.
00:53:07I think it makes sense.
00:53:08I see the vision.
00:53:10I understand the move.
00:53:11But I think a lot of how good people feel about this trade, yes, obviously, it's going
00:53:15to be how do the Mets do next year?
00:53:17How are they in 2026?
00:53:18Because they can't be disappointing as much as they were in 2025.
00:53:22That will change the vibes on this.
00:53:24But I think where the vibes are really important on this trade are going to be how do they reshape
00:53:29this outfield?
00:53:30What are the next couple moves they make?
00:53:31Are they able to add an ace pitcher or a star frontline pitcher that can help this rotation
00:53:38in the areas the Mets needed to improve on?
00:53:40And I think if you're a Mets fan looking at this, you had to think it was defense who
00:53:45was up there and also pitching.
00:53:47They had to get better in both of those areas that they lacked.
00:53:49I do think the hitting will be better.
00:53:51You hope some players take a step forward, whether it's Alvarez, whether it's Brett Beatty,
00:53:54whether he's here or not.
00:53:56And we still don't know what other moves David Stearns has up his sleeve.
00:54:00David Stearns talked about wanting to improve the defense.
00:54:02He went out and did that today.
00:54:05You have to say he at least put his, I don't want to say money where his mouth is, but he
00:54:09at least kept his word in terms of doing that today and try to improve the defense.
00:54:14Are the Mets probably a tad bit worse offensively?
00:54:18Yes.
00:54:19But we will see how all of this shakes out, which is a very important, huge offseason for
00:54:28the New York Mets that continues.
00:54:30And I do agree the pressure on David Stearns only continues and continues.
00:54:38And we'll see what happens next.
00:54:39What can they get for Jeff McNeil?
00:54:41How do they reshape the bullpen, which needs some right-handed arms?
00:54:46All of that could be very interesting.
00:54:49Let us know what you think.
00:54:52And my guy, Brian Fonseca, shout out to you.
00:54:54I see you in here.
00:54:55Brian says, Dex, we can't judge this in a vacuum.
00:54:57This is going to be part of a series of moves.
00:55:00It has to be.
00:55:00I agree.
00:55:01I agree with that.
00:55:03I think especially a trade like this that starts off, leads off the hot stove season,
00:55:08right?
00:55:09You can't just say, oh, I don't like it.
00:55:12Again, and I'm not telling you guys out there to feel some kind of way that Brandon
00:55:17Nemo is no longer in a Mets uniform.
00:55:18Not telling you not to feel some kind of way.
00:55:20I get it.
00:55:21Homegrown guy.
00:55:22But I think if you really step back, you look at what his production was, not just
00:55:28offensively, but defensively too, and the injuries and all that, and understand that
00:55:33David Stearns is doing what he says he wants to do in the kind of team that he's trying
00:55:36to build.
00:55:37But this makes sense in where he's going to go.
00:55:39This is not in a vacuum.
00:55:43This is a situation you have to look at what comes next, and you have to judge this off
00:55:47season in totality and everything that David Stearns does.
00:55:50It is a big one, and we'll see what happens.
00:55:53Soto Eddard says, I don't care what they get for Jeff.
00:55:55Jeff McNeil, I'm assuming he's talking about, they could cut him for all I care.
00:55:59Damn.
00:56:00I mean, I get it.
00:56:02Sometimes when you're done, you're done.
00:56:04I understand.
00:56:04And I said this on the show with Anthony Rivera.
00:56:08I said, I thought the Mets this off season, I thought it was time for them to move on
00:56:11from both Jeff McNeil and Brandon Nemo.
00:56:15So that's when I, and I said that to John Sapin, now when he came in here, that's why
00:56:19I wasn't shocked necessarily that this happened.
00:56:22I was maybe shocked at the timing of it.
00:56:25And then also the fact the Mets didn't have to eat any money here that other than the
00:56:31$5 million they sent to Texas, but not my money, but to Steve Cohen, that's chump change.
00:56:36So they're, they're not, they're not, they're not worried about this at all.
00:56:40I see a lot of you here, you know, talking about trading for school ball, signing Valdez.
00:56:46And I know fans are going to be different on this.
00:56:48This is something else we'll talk about more through the off season.
00:56:50How all in should the Mets go for an ace?
00:56:54If it's school ball, yeah, I'll give my opinion here now.
00:56:58Well, I think you give up what you need to, to get a picture of his caliber.
00:57:02Yeah.
00:57:02I understand there's a year left on this deal.
00:57:04You don't know if it was signed.
00:57:05You got to go all in.
00:57:06This is a Mets team that is trying to win now.
00:57:11So they have to make moves to try to win now.
00:57:14And they can't just go and sign everybody and just spend and not care about fit and all
00:57:18of that.
00:57:21I think David Stearns is trying to think about all of that, but the Mets have a core that
00:57:26is trying to win now and they have to go for it.
00:57:30So if you can go get a school ball, you go get it, you go do it.
00:57:34Now, could you go get Alcantara?
00:57:37Dylan Cease is another name you're going to hear about here and there.
00:57:42Sure.
00:57:42I think some of the stuff that you heard John Sapinero talk about with Kyle Tucker,
00:57:48possibly Fernando Tatis, if the Padres are looking to sell off players and there's another
00:57:52big move down the road for the Mets, I'm not opposed to it.
00:57:56I'm not opposed to it at all.
00:57:58At the end of the day, I think that they've got to bring in talent that fits and works for
00:58:06this team.
00:58:07And there's a lot of pressure on everybody.
00:58:08There's pressure on Stearns.
00:58:09Stearns, there's pressure on Mendoza.
00:58:13There's a lot of pressure on everybody.
00:58:17And the Mets are absolutely going to be busy, as my guy Brian Fonseca says here.
00:58:23Zach Flackerton says, it's a very even keel trade and the winner will only be proven by
00:58:28the performance.
00:58:29I mean, here's what I'll say to that.
00:58:32Performance obviously always matters.
00:58:34This is a results business that we talk about in sports.
00:58:36We all love sports here.
00:58:37Sometimes the performance, and I want to say this for Marcus Simeon, I think his defensive
00:58:45value, we will see how much that matters to the Mets.
00:58:49If he's supplemented and the right players are around him, and this goes for a lot of other
00:58:54people on the team, I think that will help lift everybody's standard and performance up.
00:58:59And we'll see how that goes.
00:59:00And so much of how other guys perform will be guys taking pressure off it.
00:59:04John Sapinaro talked about this, and he alluded to this in a conversation when he was on an
00:59:08episode here with me, and he was talking about how concerned he was about the bottom of the
00:59:12Mets lineup.
00:59:13If the Mets put the right pieces into this lineup, and Marcus Simeon, you're right, is your
00:59:18seven or eight hitter, even if he's hitting 230 there, but he's a professional and is playing
00:59:22good defense, I think Mets fans will be fine with that.
00:59:24Jason 7638 says, Stearns has surprised me with the moves he makes after making such a
00:59:34move like this, or he just made it easier for me to finally hang up my Mets gloves.
00:59:40This move might be the one, this is the one that's going to make you quit the Mets?
00:59:43I don't know, Jason, I don't know how old you are, I don't know how long you've been
00:59:46watching the Mets, but I feel like there's a whole lot of other moves that could have
00:59:50made you quit the Mets.
00:59:51I'm not telling you not to quit the Mets, I'm just saying there's a whole lot of other
00:59:54things that I think could have made you quit the Mets.
00:59:58But I understand, for some Mets fans, this is tough.
01:00:06So the way that it says, what could the Mets even give up for school ball, Jonah Tong,
01:00:10Brandon Sprout?
01:00:11It's going to take a lot.
01:00:14I'll say that.
01:00:14It's going to take a lot.
01:00:15I think it's going to take two of their top pitching prospects.
01:00:18I think there's a world in where it could be Tong and Sprout.
01:00:20Maybe you hold on to McClain.
01:00:21I think there's a world in which that could happen.
01:00:25Would I do it?
01:00:26Yeah.
01:00:28I'd do it.
01:00:29I'd do it.
01:00:29I'm not into the prospect hugging.
01:00:31I'm not a prospect hugger.
01:00:33And there's a lot more.
01:00:34We'll get into this and down the road.
01:00:37And we'll take some of your questions from here.
01:00:39We'll do a mailbag and all of that stuff here on Straight Outta Flushing.
01:00:42But there's a lot more we can get into down the road.
01:00:44But if you told me that was part of the price, yeah.
01:00:48For the best pitcher in the game right now, yeah, I'd do it.
01:00:52I'd absolutely do it.
01:00:55E-Torres, 11-207 says, center field, left field, first base, D8, starting pitcher, and bullpen.
01:01:00Damn, we got a lot of holes to fill.
01:01:04David Stern's got a lot of work to do, man.
01:01:06You're not wrong about that.
01:01:08They've got a lot of work to do.
01:01:11This is what makes this offseason so interesting in how they shape the team, how they get better defensively.
01:01:17Do they have the right bats?
01:01:18Do they have the right pieces to complement Soto and Lindor and Alonso if he's back?
01:01:23Or Diaz if he's back?
01:01:24There's a lot of things they have to do.
01:01:28As Ray Marks says, no to Valdez.
01:01:31Go after Michael King.
01:01:33Michael King's actually a move I wouldn't mind the Mets making.
01:01:35I think they'll be good at Joe Ryan or Pablo Lopez.
01:01:38So that could be good.
01:01:40My producer here, Tommy Cohen, who's a Yankees fan, which is kind enough to still produce the show.
01:01:46He had to let me know, former Yankee, there as well.
01:01:51Jason also added, it could be momentary emotions that might fade off.
01:01:54I felt this way in recent times and it wasn't enough to make me give up.
01:01:57Yeah.
01:01:57No, Jason, that's what I was saying before.
01:02:00I'm not going to be the person here telling a fan how to feel about this trade or that you shouldn't be emotional about it.
01:02:07Like, we like sports.
01:02:08Sports, there's emotions tied into sports.
01:02:11And that's fine.
01:02:12You know, I think sometimes you're right.
01:02:14It could be momentary and it might fleet.
01:02:16The feeling might be fleeting and you look back at this and say, okay, I see the logic in this.
01:02:20But I also understand why there's emotion for the Mets fan and Brandon Nimmo.
01:02:26We should pay Brandon Nimmo, excuse me, the proper respect here was a good Met, homegrown Met, really developed well, really played hard.
01:02:35Unfortunately, his injuries have hurt him in the last couple of years.
01:02:38But I think when you look at this, if you don't just look at the production offensively and you look at the Mets getting off this money, I do think that you can find, you can see the logic in this and what the Mets were able to accomplish here.
01:02:52But at the end of the day, right, no matter what we say here, what we all discuss here, a lot of this is going to come down to the rest of the moves that David Stearns makes this offseason.
01:03:04And what is going to be an important one, a busy one, a one that Mets fans are going to scrutinize, just like you guys are scrutinizing this trade.
01:03:17You know, that's it.
01:03:18Is this going to be big moves by Stearns?
01:03:21Are there going to be small moves?
01:03:23And I know none of you guys want to see it.
01:03:24You don't want to see small market Stearns.
01:03:26That's not what you that's not what you came here for.
01:03:29And I think there's a way in which Stearns has been really good at finding moves on the margins at times.
01:03:33And it worked well in year one.
01:03:35But then you also saw things not go so well, like Frankie Montas.
01:03:39So we will see.
01:03:41Brian Fonseca says, whatever you do, keep Diaz.
01:03:43P2, but Diaz especially.
01:03:45That's kind of what John Sapinero was saying.
01:03:47Diaz is top of the list.
01:03:48I do think the Mets have to keep Diaz.
01:03:52So we will see how all that goes.
01:03:55I wasn't able to get to everybody's comments, but I want to say there was a lot of great comments by everybody here.
01:04:00We do go back and look at these comments.
01:04:02We will have them in other shows.
01:04:03To bring on, this was an impromptu live episode of Straight Outta Flushing.
01:04:07I'm so grateful to see all of you guys tap in with us, join, send your comments.
01:04:13It is always great to interact with the great New York sports fans, especially the Mets fans.
01:04:17I know you guys are very passionate about what could possibly happen this season for the New York Mets coming up in 2026.
01:04:24But first, we got to get through the offseason and see how all that goes.
01:04:28Hot stove, man.
01:04:28It is heating up already.
01:04:33Surprise trade on a Sunday here.
01:04:37Got to thank everybody who rocked with us on the show.
01:04:40My first guest, Anthony Rivera, Subway to Shea podcast.
01:04:42Please check them out there.
01:04:44John Sapinero of the Till Mets Do Us Part podcast with my guy, Ibi.
01:04:47They do a fantastic job on that show.
01:04:50And of course, we have one of the best in the game, our great MLB insider and columnist, John Heyman, who's kind enough to give me some great time and insight on what is going on with the Mets this offseason and this move as the Mets trade Brandon Nimmo for Marcus Simeon.
01:05:07As always, thank you to you, the fans.
01:05:10My director and producer, Tommy Cohen, did a fantastic job on this live.
01:05:14Everybody behind the scenes.
01:05:16We'll catch you next time on another edition of Straight Outta Flushing.
01:05:19Got a lot coming up in the next couple of weeks as we get to the winter meetings and beyond.
01:05:24So please stay tuned with us.
01:05:25Hit that like button.
01:05:26Hit that subscribe button on the New York Post Sports YouTube channel.
01:05:29I'm Dexter Henry.
01:05:30I'll catch you next time.
01:05:31As I said, another edition of Straight Outta Flushing.
01:05:34Peace.
01:05:37Peace.
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