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Only half a game back of the NL East lead, the New York Mets are still considered a competitor two months into the season. They’re living up to the promise they showed in spring training, and they’re doing it without one of their best players: David Wright. Due to his absence, the team’s offense is hurting a bit, and manager Terry Collins has been playing a carousel of hot hands at third base for weeks now.
Long have fans been clamoring for infield help — mostly an upgrade to shortstop, but Wilmer Flores has showed he’s more than capable of holding his own. Now, the Mets are looking for a solution at third base since Wright may miss significant time this season. Of all the names that have been mentioned, Ben Zobrist is one of the most prominent. When the Tampa Bay Rays were looking to trade him in the offseason, the Mets were among the interested teams. However, after seeing his start to the season, New York should gladly pass on the prospect of trading for Zobrist.
As a team, the Mets are hitting .239/.305/.364 this season. To trade away a young player for Zobrist, who’s 34 years old, in the final year of his contract, and hitting .234/.310/.403 doesn’t seem to be worth it to me. His offense just isn’t what it used to be. Then there’s the simple fact that current third baseman Ruben Tejada has been very hot at the plate, hitting .310/.380/.451 in 25 games this season. Neither player is a natural third baseman, so there really isn’t an upside to either defensively.
Zobrist’s main positive is his ability to field almost any position. And since the Mets are set on using a six-man rotation, which holds their bench to only four players, having someone like Zobrist off the bench would be extremely useful. However, he would be an everyday player if the Mets were to get him, making the only positive in getting him irrelevant.
While a roster shakeup is always interesting and can possibly give the team a jolt (which the Mets could certainly use right now), sometimes the best decisions are to just let the team be. While no one knows how long Wright will be out, in his address to the media earlier this week he seemed set on returning this season, and sooner rather than later. If Tejada eventually fizzles out at third, the Mets have two thriving prospects in the minors in Matt Reynolds and Gavin Cecchini who could find a way to make an impact on the Major League roster. Until that time comes, however, the Mets would be wise to let their infield stay as it is.
Matt Turner is a New York Mets Writer for www.RantSports.com. “Like” him on Facebook, follow him on Twitter @MTurnerNY, or add him to your network on LinkedIn or Google.
