Mets have three options with Dominic Smith following the Matt Adams addition

The New York Mets added another first baseman with big league experience to the franchise on Friday when they signed Matt Adams to a minor league deal. What could this mean for Dominic Smith?

The New York Mets made a surprising move on Friday, inking veteran first baseman Matt Adams to a minor league deal. While this guarantees him as much playing time on the major league roster as I’ve had in my lifetime, it does suggest something could be brewing with Dominic Smith.

Smith has long been one of the team’s best trade chips. The man has no obvious path toward regular playing time. With Adams now in the picture, it seems more feasible to move him.

The organization doesn’t have to make a decision yet. Long before they do make their choice, let’s look at the three possibilities.

Trade Dominic Smith

Trading Smith isn’t as easy as it seems. If it were, he’d be in another team’s uniform by now.

The problem is Smith is a first baseman and just about every team in baseball has at least one guy at the position already. Smith could theoretically replace a veteran first baseman who lacks talent on defense and allow the infield butcher to move to the DH. However, this limits him to only the American League teams for now.

A Smith trade has more obstacles than just finding a fair deal. I think most fans want to see the team get back a major league player. Preferably, we would all like to see them beef up the bullpen.

The problem with this is there isn’t much room. The only three relievers currently projected to make the Opening Day roster with minor league options are Edwin Diaz, Seth Lugo, and Robert Gsellman. Gsellman could get demoted, but how good of a reliever would they even be able to get in return for Smith?

An alternative option is to re-explore the possibility of tying Smith to Jeurys Familia and swapping the pair for a younger reliever with upside. This feels like the most likely scenario to me. It also allows the team a little more payroll flexibility at the trade deadline with Familia off the books.

Until we actually see Smith with the team on Opening Day, he’s going to be a trade candidate.

Stash Dominic Smith in AAA

Smith still has minor league options left which means he could always get sent down to Triple-A to begin the season. This happened to him in 2019 early on. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Mets do the same.

This time around, the Mets could use it as an opportunity to allow him to play more games in the outfield. If Smith can become a more versatile defender with at least average abilities in left field, he’s far more valuable to the team moving forward.

By keeping him with the organization, the Mets could also prepare for the potential addition of the DH in 2021. It feels like an ideal situation with Smith getting regular at-bats as the team’s first baseman with Pete Alonso moving to the DH role every so often.

This option may not be the wisest choice. It also only makes sense if the Mets are going to put Adams on the Opening Day roster. He’ll need to earn it this spring.

One thing I do know is that these two cannot co-exist on the same roster. In fact, I was hopeful Smith could develop into a player like Adams. Teams have experimented with Adams in the outfield as well, but he’s clearly more of a first baseman/DH type of player.

When spring training begins, if Smith is still around, I expect a battle between these two for a roster spot. Smith should have early dibs. However, an impressive spring from Adams could change the front office’s opinion very quickly.

As Brodie Van Wagenen said last year, he wants to put the best roster possible together. Things shouldn’t be any different in 2020.