Mets: Could Jeurys Familia trade hint at 2019 return?

The Mets traded Jeurys Familia to the Oakland Athletics two days ago. But is this really the last we’re going to see of him?

On Saturday, the New York Mets traded away Jeurys Familia to the Oakland Athletics. They received two lower level prospects and some international signing money. The prospects are Will Toffey and Bobby Wahl.

There are some who see promise in both players. But then there are others who believe we got the short end of the stick. There are even some teams who were upset that the Mets took the deal, especially this early.

But then there are also some who believe the trade might just be a setup for something bigger next season. They bring up the possibility of the Mets jumping on a smaller deal right away because they have plans to offer Familia a contract in the off-season.

It makes some sense and it’s totally something the Mets would pull off, wanting to get nearly anything in return if they had hope he was going to stay.

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Let’s look at when the Orioles traded Manny Machado as an example. There was no wiggle room there, they had to trade him. The odds that the Orioles signed him back in 2019 are really low, so they had to try to get as much back as they could.

That’s how the Mets are different. Familia isn’t going to demand an insane contract. If the Mets have it in their minds that Familia might come back next season, the urgency of bringing in a big haul is lessened.

If they expect Familia to stay, then a part of them wouldn’t really put too much emphasis onto who they get in return. They would just want to get something back.

Of course it’s impossible to confirm or deny anything because of the secretive state of the three-headed General Manager but knowing how the Mets have been run, this is a possibility.

This could end up being very similar to what the Yankees did with Aroldis Chapman, but to a much lesser extent. Instead of getting a huge haul and then signing him to a big contract, we will do the opposite. That’s not necessarily because it’s the Mets, but because Familia isn’t on the same level as Chapman.

Ideally the Mets would probably want to sign him to a deal worth between eight and 11 million over three or four years.

Next: What can they do with the extra international pool money?

Even so, it’s just as possible that the Mets were just being their standard selves and miss-judged the market. That’s always likely.