NY Mets: Three best moves from the Brodie Van Wagenen era

Three moves by former New York Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen to be thankful for in 2021.

From the moment Steve Cohen was set to purchase the New York Mets from the Wilpon family, it became clear Brodie Van Wagenen’s days as the Mets general manager were numbered. Then, one of the first things Cohen did was clean house in the front office. He ushers a new era, one that looks to clean up what Van Wagenen left behind.

Joining the franchise in 2019, Van Wagenen was a rather unusual hire for the team. A star agent turned general manager, he made for an out of the box hire to replace Sandy Alderson, who is now back as the team president. And like his hire, Van Wagenen’s tenure was full of risky and questionable moves.

He had an unorthodox approach to filling out team needs, often including dealing top prospects for aging veterans. Most notably being the Robinson Cano and Marcus Stroman trades. Van Wagenen often overpaid in trades, as well as free agents. The latter being most disappointing given they rarely were in discussion for top free agents.

Nevertheless, as any tenure does, there were some good moves that came out of it. The team just missed the playoffs in 2019 and have a very talented young offensive core going forward. That being said, let’s take a look at the best moves made during the Van Wagenen era.

Honorable Mention: Signing relievers Justin Wilson and Brad Bach

Yes, Van Wagenen whiffed on numerous free agent signings over the past two years. However, he did make a few under-the-radar moves that paid dividends. The biggest two wound up being relief pitchers Justin Wilson and Brad Brach.

Signed to a two-year, $10-million deal in 2019, Wilson is currently on the market. Whether or not he is brought back, he was arguably the team’s most reliable reliever the past two seasons. The southpaw posted his best numbers since his second season in 2019, with a 2.54era over 45 games. He followed up that performance with a 3.66era in 23 in the bizarre 2020 season. For a last-second move, the Wilson signing was a big one.

Unlike Wilson, Brach was brought in mid-season, after being designated for assignment by the Chicago Cubs. The former all-star reliever bounced around the league since 2018 before finding a home in the Mets bullpen. In 2019 he posted a 3.68era over 16 games and pitched another 12.1 in 2020. While neither Wilson nor Brach offered elite arms, the two were reliable arms out of a lackluster Mets bullpen.

Honorable Mention: Not Trading for J.T. Realmuto

Prior to the Philadelphia Phillies acquiring the two-time All-Star in 2019, the Mets were the heavy favorites to trade for catcher J.T. Realmuto. The now free agent catcher commanded a hefty return, one that rumored to include some combination of either Brandon Nimmo or Michael Conforto and prospects.

While Realmuto would have been a significant upgrade over Wilson Ramos, such a trade would have put the Mets in a tricky spot. Conforto is coming off of a career year and both he and Nimmo will be starters in 2021. Not to mention two prospects that came up in negotiations were star first baseman Pete Alonso and potential starting infielder Andres Gimenez.

At the end of the day, Van Wagenen not trading for Realmuto was the right move.

2) Quietly acquiring infielder J.D. Davis

From acquiring Robison Cano/Edwin Diaz to bringing back relief pitcher Jeurys Familia, Van Wagenen put together quite an entertaining 2019 off-season. Yes, a handful of his major moves have not worked out as intended, but there was one move that caught everyone off guard. Not because it was a major deal, rather what it turned into.

The Mets dealt three minor leaguers, outfielder Ross Adolph, infielder Luis Santana, and catcher Scott Manea to the Houston Astros in return for infielders J.D. Davis and Cody Bohanek. It was a deal that at the time that many viewed as another minor depth acquisition.

Upon acquiring Davis, Van Wagenen said how “J.D. is a versatile offensive talent… He’s young, had success vs. lefties and he’ll provide depth at the corner positions.”

Little did anyone know though just how much of an understatement that would be.

Quickly, Davis turned into one of the team’s most productive hitters. After hitting a .194avg over two seasons for the Astros, Davis has hit .288 for the Mets in two seasons, with 28 home runs and 76RBI. After being moved around in the field due to below-average defense in 2019, he improved once returning to his natural third base position in 2020.

This season, Davis’ status was up in the air. Until the announcement of Robinson Cano’s 162-game suspension for PEDs, Davis appeared to be an odd-man-out because of his average-at-best defensive ability. He has proven to be a fantastic offensive player who can be a middle of the order bat for the Mets. That is though if the team does not include him in a trade this off-season.

1) Extending starting pitcher Jacob deGrom

Back in 2015, who knew where the Mets starting pitchers stood long-term. Which would go onto being the ace? Could it be Matt Harvey? Rookie sensation Noah Syndergaard? Would Zack Wheeler become the ace upon his return?

Instead, it turned out to be the late-blooming shortstop turned starter Jacob deGrom.

Making his debut at 26-years old in 2014, deGrom quietly became better every year. He won National League Rookie of the Year and made the All-Star game his second season. deGrom pitched well over the next two seasons until taking it to another level from 2018 on. He posted one of the greatest single-season performances in history at 30-years old. In 32 starts, deGrom posted a 1.70era in 217 innings, striking out 269 with a 1.98FIP.

That year, deGrom won his first Cy Young award, as Van Wagenen knew it was time to lock him up long-term. After all, deGrom only stood behind Tom Seaver for the lowest earned run average in team history. That March, Van Wagenen extended deGrom on a five-year deal worth north of $137-million, with a player option for a sixth year.

As it is now known, deGrom is arguably the best pitcher in baseball. He followed up his historic 2018 season with another Cy Young in 2019 and was a finalist this past year. deGrom is signed through 2023, to which he will be 35-years old should he chose to opt-out.

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Without a doubt, headlines as one of the few great moves made by former Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen.