Mets Acquire Marcus Stroman In Bold Move
Image credit: Marcus Stroman (Photo by Dave Reginek/Getty Images)
Despite a disappointing season that finds them in fourth place in the National League East and six games back of a wild card, the Mets made a win-now move and acquired one of the best arms on the market.
The Mets acquired Marcus Stroman from the Blue Jays on Sunday, sending pitching prospects Anthony Kay and Simeon Woods-Richardson to Toronto in return. Kay was the Mets’ No. 4 prospect and Woods-Richardson was their No. 6 prospect.
With the move, Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen has traded three first-round picks (Kay and Justin Dunn-2016, Jarred Kelenic-2018) in nine months since taking over.
METS ACQUIRE
Marcus Stroman, RHP
Age: 28
The Mets are bringing the Long Island native home in the midst of a bounce-back season. Stroman struggled through his worst season a year ago but posted a 2.96 ERA this year, fifth-best in the American League. Stroman keeps the ball on the ground with his diving sinker and gets swings and missed with his mid-80s slider, against which batters are hitting .167 this year. He will not be a free agent until 2021, giving him at least the rest of this season and all of next season with his hometown team.
BLUE JAYS ACQUIRE
Anthony Kay, LHP
Age: 24
The 31st overall pick in 2016, Kay didn’t pitch after signing due to an elbow injury and missed all of 2017 after having Tommy John surgery. He returned last year and has flown up the system, reaching Triple-A this year in just his second season on the mound. Kay is a power lefthander with a fastball that sits at 93 mph and regularly reaches 95-96 mph. He complements his fastball with a high-spin, top-to-bottom curveball he locates to sides of the plate and a changeup that flashes above-average with sink at the bottom of the zone. Kay’s arsenal is that of a mid-rotation starter or better, but his control and command are inconsistent and make him a future back-end starter in the eyes of most evaluators. He is nearly major league ready and could make his debut this year.
Simeon Woods-Richardson, RHP
Age: 18
The Mets’ second-round pick last year, Woods-Richardson made his full-season debut this year and earned raves as one of the best pitchers in the low Class A South Atlantic League despite a pedestrian 4.25 ERA. Woods-Richardson is a 6-foot-3 righthander who pounds the strike zone with a power arsenal. His four-seam fastball reaches 95-96 mph and his cutter sits at 92 mph, giving him two hard offerings to front his four-pitch mix. His 12-to-6 breaking ball has hard downward action and shows the potential to be an impact pitch, and his changeup flashes average. Woods-Richardson struggles leaving the ball up and gets hit as a result sometimes, but evaluators feel he can be an impact starter once he learns to work the edges of the strike zone. He earns wide praise for his fearless, bulldog mentality on the mound and aggressiveness in attacking hitters.
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