Mets were close to trading for Jason Kipnis, but guess who stopped it?

It wasn’t Sandy

The Mets made their fans a little happier last night when they completed a deal for outfielder Jay Bruce. While the deal is a pretty good one going forward, there’s still a need at second base for a solid infielder to take up.

One of the names that has been floating around the last few weeks was Jason Kipnis from Cleveland. The veteran second baseman is apparently being shopped around and the Mets were reportedly very interested.

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According to a report from Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, they were so interested that a deal was reportedly pretty much done to acquire the 30-year-old infielder and bring him over to Queens. Officials from both teams were under the assumption the deal would be made. It never went through, however, and still hasn’t. One of Heyman’s sources told him the trade was nixed “by someone at the top, very likely over money.”

It’s logical to think that this decision wasn’t Sandy Alderson’s call as he wouldn’t have even negotiated a deal to begin with if he knew that would be an issue. No, it sounds like this “top official” was actually one of the Mets owners. Whether it was Fred or Jeff Wilpon, someone decided the money was not well spent on Kipnis, and they could do better otherwise.

Kipnis is still under contract for two more seasons and is guaranteed $30.5 million over that span. While it’s less than the money given to Bruce, it averages out to more money per year for Kipnis.

This is obviously annoying as Kipnis would pretty much fill the exact the need the Amazin’s have both on the defensive and offensive side. It’s not surprising though. Mets ownership has been getting slammed this offseason for their cheap ways, and this is just another reason that shows why all the criticism has been valid.

There’s no word from Heyman in his report who the Mets would have had to give up in order to acquire Kipnis. It does make me think, however, that the team does have some pieces that other teams are interested in – pieces that could help them make actual deals. Maybe they could use some of these pieces to make a play at Josh Harrison or Starlin Castro.

Next: Mets still need to do more after signing Jay Bruce

The hot stove is finally heating up, and the Mets still have some moves to make. Let’s hope they don’t disappoint after starting out well.