The New York Mets were on the verge of acquiring San Diego Padres first baseman Eric Hosmer, as well as some starting pitching, on Saturday. What went wrong?
As I reported on Saturday, rumors circulated that New York might take on Hosmer’s salary in return for pitching depth, placing them in Steve Cohen tax territory. Chris Paddack and Emilio Pagan were touted as possible candidates.
Homser responded by claiming he’s ready to play on Opening Day… somewhere. Nobody knows where it is yet. The Padres completed yet another deal on Sunday, this time for A’s starter Sean Manaea.
Because of Hosmer’s contract, the Mets’ trade fell through. The front staff felt that the ends didn’t justify the means, which were the four years and nearly $60 million remaining on Hosmer’s contract.
According to Joel Sherman, upgrading New York’s pitching staff would have cost around $24 million of Hosmer’s contract. In Queens, that wasn’t going to fly.
Eric Hosmer trade rumors are dead, according to the Mets
New York would have transferred first baseman Dominic Smith back to the Mets in exchange for the $24 million salary. Smith is coming off a bad year, but he’s only two seasons away from receiving NL MVP votes on the second ballot in a truncated season. He’s not a slob.
Is Hosmer worth as much as Smith? The Mets seemed to believe so at one point, but with the pay tossed in, they swiftly changed their minds. When healthy, Paddack is an intriguing young pitcher who, given Jacob deGrom’s injury, would have helped the Mets fill out their rotation.
The Mets resisted the temptation to go over $300 million in payroll. It would have cost a lot of money to be subjected to such a punishment.
