Big Surprise, Reports Are Coming Out That The Wilpons Nixed The Carlos Gomez Deal Because Of Financial Issues
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel- The Brewers thought they had a deal with the Mets on Wednesday evening to send Gomez to New York in exchange for injured pitcher Zack Wheeler and infielder Wilmer Flores. That deal was called off by the Mets over what they said was a hip issue with Gomez that concerned them. Boras, who represents Gomez, said Gomez never had a hip issue to begin with and certainly doesn’t have one now. Boras said the health problem Gomez had in early June was something else that since had been medically cleared.
“Carlos never had any issue with his hip,” Boras said in a telephone interview Thursday morning. “He had an abductor and groin issue a few weeks ago and just to make sure he was OK, we requested the team do an MRI that showed his abductor had healed with medication. The doctor just happened to throw in, ‘By the way, his hip structurally and tissue-wise is clean.’ “So, we have evidence that a doctor on record said his hip in fact was clean. So, why did this become an issue.”
…So, what really happened that led to the Mets calling off the deal? A source familiar with the talks on both sides said a series of events that were actually financial, not medical, were the key factors. That source said in initial talks, the Mets wanted the Brewers to take centerfielder Juan Lagares in the trade. The Brewers said no, in part because Lagares has an elbow issue but also because he has a four-year, $23 million contract extension that kicks in next year and they didn’t want to pick up the money. So, after further talks, it was decided that the Brewers would take Flores in addition to Wheeler, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery and won’t be able to pitch before next June. The source said the Mets then asked the Brewers to throw in the 2016 Competitive Balance Round B pick they were recently awarded and the Brewers said no. The source said the Brewers then were asked to put some money in the trade to cover part of what’s remaining on Gomez’s contract, including a $9 million salary next year. Considering the talent level of Gomez and his reasonable contract, the Brewers understandably declined to put any cash into the deal. It was only then, according to the source, that the Mets came back and said they were calling off the deal because of concerns over Gomez’s medical records. So, this became a financial issue in the end, which many people would say is not surprising considering the financial constraints the Mets have been operating under in recent years.
Look at those two goddamn mutts in the picture above. Because they are (probably) the ones that did this to the Mets. Just like with any other business, everything starts at the top. They are the reason a New York baseball team is 20th in payroll, they are the reason Sandy Alderson has to nickel and dime every GM in the league to make a trade happen, and they are the reason trades like Jacob deGrom for Kelly Shoppach almost happened. Trying to make salaries match up and sweetening a deal because you don’t want to take back too much money is something the Royals and Rays of the world do. This is not something a New York team should be doing in general, let alone for an All-Star making $9 million next season.
Now do I think that trading for an outfielder with a potentially faulty hip is scary for a team constantly being burned by injuries to David Wright? Sure. Does that go double for a team that may have the worst medical staff in the history of baseball? Definitely. And can you ever truly trust medical records that are not tweeted out by Adam Schefter? I suppose not. But sooner or later, you have to just jump in and pray to God that for once everything will work out for the Mets. For a brief moment, all of us Mets fans remembered what it was like to root for a team “going for it”. But then 6:00 appeared on the alarm clock, “I Got You Babe” started playing on the radio, and it was back to Groundhog Day as Mets fans.
Now this has all become a case of he said, she said between the Mets, the Brewers, and Scott Boras. I don’t really give a shit about the Brewers, because while I would have liked to get Gomez or Parra on the Mets, there are other options out there. But Boras is the one that scares me. Not because the Mets will be looking to sign any of his upcoming free agents or anything. That would require actual real-life money from owners with testicles to pull it off. But I’m worried because when Matt Harvey’s contract is up after the 2018 season and Boras is going to bleed the Mets for potentially costing him money in Gomez’s next contract. Well that, or Boras just ships Harvey to the Yankees since they’ll pay his asking price and he was a diehard fan growing up. But it just made those negotiations that much harder down the road.
And somewhere in a North Carolina medium security prison is Bernie Madoff, probably laughing his dick off about how dumb the Wilpons are. If I had one wish, it would be for Madoff to be thrown in a “federal pound me in the ass” prison. I would not wish for a Mets World Series or a big bat in the Mets lineup. I just would like to make sure that Bernie Madoff suffers more than myself and every other Mets fan has to on a daily basis (well, other than those sad souls that are Mets fans in “federal pound me in the ass” prisons). And what is a medium security prison anyway? Is it like the jail in Orange Is The New Black? Is there potentially a male version of Crazy Eyes that could shank Bernie Madoff? As usual, there are more questions than answers when it comes to the Mets.
The only positive in all of this is that Zack Wheeler’s girlfriend hasn’t been shipped to Milwaukee, even though this picture will always make me feel inadequate as a man.