MLB teams that should take a big step

The Mets made the biggest sensation of the Hot Stove season last Thursday, acquiring shortstop Francisco Lindor and right-hander Carlos Carrasco from Cleveland. Landing two players of this caliber – especially a star as magnetic as Lindor – is remarkable in any setting. But it was especially huge for the

The Mets made the biggest sensation of the Hot Stove season last Thursday, acquiring shortstop Francisco Lindor and right-hander Carlos Carrasco from Cleveland.

Landing two players of this caliber – especially a star as magnetic as Lindor – is remarkable in any setting. But it was especially huge for the Mets, given their place in a competitive Eastern National League with the three-time defending division champion Braves. According to FanGraphs’ Dan Szymborski, his ZiPS system had the Mets seven games behind Atlanta in the projected standings before the trade. Now the two teams are virtually even, with the Mets’ odds of making the playoffs climbing about 31 percentage points to 72.4 percent.

In fact, ZiPS shows that at the time of the Lindor trade, the Mets had the most to gain from any team, in terms of playoff odds, by adding five wins to their roster (or roughly l combined impact of Lindor and Carrasco). But there are plenty of other clubs that would pull a comparable bump from such a move.

From Szymborski’s calculations, here are five of the teams that could benefit the most from a Mets-sized splash, and one way each could pull off that sort of feat. Note that those suggested moves aren’t necessarily at that five-win level – they’re hard to find – but would still give either team’s hopes a significant boost in October.

angels
It’s a time of opportunity in Anaheim. Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon are superstars in their bounties, and the American League West may be as ripe for the taking as they’ve been in a while. Houston and Oakland are both at risk of losing several key players, while Seattle and Texas don’t look set to return to the top of the table just yet. New Angels general manager Perry Minasian replaced Andrelton Simmons with José Iglesias at shortstop and added closer Raisel Iglesias, but has yet to land the kind of difference-maker who could change the balance of power in the West.

A dazzling movement: Signature of the free agent right-hander Trevor Bauer. The pitch launch was a sore spot for the Angels, and although Dylan Bundy turned out to be a terrific addition to the low buy last year, the team’s rotation is still only 19th in the war. projected by FanGraphs. With Shohei Ohtani far from a sure thing at this point, paying the price to land the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner – projected at around 4 WAR – would be the best way to help Trout return to the playoffs.

Blue jays
They appear to be in the mix for quite a few impact players this offseason, but so far they haven’t dropped one, with the re-signing of southpaw Robbie Ray their only notable move. However, it seems to be more a question of who and when than if. The Blue Jays went from 95 losses in 2019 to 32-28 in the shortened 20 campaign, making the playoffs behind a young core of positional players and last year’s big acquisition of free agent Hyun Jin Ryu. The club still finished behind the Rays and Yankees in the division, but with Tampa Bay saying goodbye to Blake Snell and Charlie Morton and the Yankees also having a calm winter, there’s an opening here for Toronto.

A dazzling movement: Sign the free agent flyer George springer. While the Jays could go in several different directions – and snatching DJ LeMahieu from the Yanks would undoubtedly be satisfying – Springer is probably the best solution. He would be a defensive upgrade to Randal Grichuk’s center and bring a winning story, not to mention his elite bat. Springer could help make the club not only a division contender, but a championship contender as well.

Cardinals
Really, this could be one of the top four teams in NL Central. Aside from the Mets, the Cubs, Cardinals, Brewers and Reds each ranked in the top five teams with the most to gain from a five-game jump, according to ZiPS. It is because of the closeness of these clubs. However, none has advanced this offseason to try to improve its workforce. (In fact, the division’s most notable moves were subtractions, titled by Yu Darvish of Chicago). As for the Cardinals, they’ve managed to squeeze through the playoffs in back-to-back seasons, but their roster lacks top talent. Pretty much all St. Louis has done this winter is turn down Kolten Wong’s club option and (for now) not re-signing franchise longtime faces Yadier Molina and Adam Wainwright. .

A dazzling movement: Trade for third baseman Nolan Arenado. Although St. Louis has been linked with the Rockies star in the past, this is likely a big stretch, given the six years and $ 199 million remaining on Arenado’s contract and its opt-out clause. post-2021. But maybe the Cards could get creative, given all the big deals that are expected to come off the club’s books after this season (Matt Carpenter, Dexter Fowler, Andrew Miller and Carlos Martínez). Assuming his offensive 2020 meltdown was the product of a weird and shortened season, Arenado would be a massive third-place upgrade from Carpenter, 35, who has struggled for the past two years.

Nationals
While the Hot Stove has for the most part been at a quiet simmer so far, the Nats have been relatively active, addressing a thin team by trading for first baseman Josh Bell and signing left fielder Kyle. Schwarber. Washington has addressed two big needs and now has a little more noise behind Juan Soto and Trea Turner, but frankly the job shouldn’t be done. The Lindor trade made it clear, with ZiPS now viewing the Nats as a clear third behind the Braves and Mets.

A dazzling movement: Sign free agent receiver JT Realmuto. The Nats’ questionable depth means GM Mike Rizzo could also make a significant addition in second or third base, or even in the starting rotation, where there are plenty of question marks behind Max Scherzer’s Big Three. , Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin. . But the Nats Seekers, led by Yan Gomes, are at the bottom of FanGraphs’ projections, while Realmuto has a strong case for the game’s best safety net. If Washington is willing to make the necessary financial commitment, that would help. greatly to help him challenge Atlanta and New York.

twins
Lindor’s trade helped Minnesota, whose post-season probability of ZiPS has reached nearly 75%, with Cleveland falling to a net third in the AL Central. On the other hand, the Twins have watched the division’s other main contender, the White Sox, trade for Lance Lynn and now strike a deal with free agent Liam Hendriks, the sources say. The Twins have been relatively calm, and if they want to keep pace with Chicago and win their third straight division crown, some reinforcements are in order – even beyond the seemingly inevitable return of Nelson Cruz.

A dazzling movement: Trade for Luis Castillo or Sonny gray. The two starting throwers have participate in trade negotiations, with the Reds undergoing further pay cuts, and the two are projecting themselves among the top 20 pitchers in MLB (with Castillo a little above Gray). The Twins’ rotation is strong at the top (Kenta Maeda, José Berríos) but somewhat unstable below, especially since Jake Odorizzi and Rich Hill are free agents. While Minnesota might be content to gain background depth, having the fifth part options replaced by Castillo or Gray Devin Smeltzer and Lewis Thorpe would be the best way to counter the White Sox. Such a move would cost the Twins wealth, but neither of the righties would break the bank.