Yesterday’s NY Mets-Mariners trade reminds us of David Stearn's dependable trait

Bold predictions season is just about over with most of the biggest players on the move either traded or signed. This didn’t stop ESPN from making some bold predictions of their own, notably sending Brett Baty to the Seattle Mariners for Matt Brash and Jurrangelo Cijntje, a top 10 Mariners pitching prospect.

Amazingly, the Mets and Mariners did strike a deal Friday evening. Cooper Criswell was sent to the M’s for cash considerations. No longer needed because they brought in Tobias Myers alongside Freddy Peralta, it was a sensible move to cut Criswell when they did. His purpose no longer existed outside of a potential injury.

There were some things to like about Criswell, his high ground ball rate being a leader. Myers is undoubtedly better and with minor league options attached, a more versatile player for the roster. Sending Criswell packing had no Mets fan rushing to grade the trade or assess too deeply. It’s a small move that can, however, remind us of an underrated David Stearns quality.

The Mets continue to be aggressive by filling roles while also remaining open to dropping those players for better ones

Stearns has done this before in a variety of ways. The first one that comes to mind in 2024 was when Pablo Reyes spent about a day with the Mets before they traded for Eddy Alvarez. A weaker hitter, Alvarez was a much quicker player who’d give them the speed off the bench they coveted more than Reyes’ defensive versatility.

Paper Mets, ones who join the organization but are cut before the season even begins, have been a regular occurrence under Stearns. Austin Adams was someone who signed a split contract ahead of the 2024 season only to get traded to the Athletics (were they still in Oakland then?) before the season began. Others, like Cooper Hummel and even Justin Slaten, have come and gone in short spans. Slaten didn’t even last a day, getting taken in the Rule 5 Draft only to get shipped over to the Boston Red Sox for a prospect.

Under previous regimes, it seems like players would be added to the Mets with more purpose. While not entirely uncommon to DFA a player added in the offseason before they even get to Opening Day, the Mets are doing this with a lot of purpose. Richard Lovelady is another example of a player on a split contract who has been DFA’d, his future now in limbo. To replace him on the roster, the Mets added infielder Vidal Brujan on the same contract structure. Criswell is a third who happened to have one of those whacky contracts meant to keep a fringe major leaguer around as minor league depth if he happens to pass through waivers.

We got our first glimpse of Stearns’ itchy finger in 2024 when players like Zack Short, Joey Wendle, Yohan Ramirez, and Michael Tonkin were all part of the Opening Day roster and had leashes tugged quickly. It’s a little different in the offseason. The only thing changing in Criswell’s life is he’ll now report to Arizona instead of Florida for spring training.

Criswell had long been penciled in as the best longman choice for the Mets. Suddenly, it’s Myers. Don’t doubt the Mets will continue to look for other opportunities. If there’s a place to improve the roster, they’ll smell the blood.