Section 23 in the series analyzes the New York Mets

Brodie Van Wagenen’s second big trade as general manager of the Mets was handling a pair of prospective customers for Marcus Stroman in Toronto just before last year’s trade deadline.

It was an unexpected move for a team that didn’t seem to have many chances to reach the postseason, but the Mets continued to run – and survive at Zack Wheeler – to compete for much of the season.

The Mets did not give up nearly as much as Stroman as they did for Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz the previous winter in trade with Seattle, but the deal further depleted the farming system in return for having better opportunities to compete both in 2019 and 2020.

Although Stroman overcame a slow start at Queens to throw well in stretches, the Mets fell far from wild cards and Wheeler went to Philadelphia, so they were looking to get a lot from the right hander this season before Stroman could hit free agents.

The closure of sports because COVID-19 has reduced what Stroman’s figures can achieve this year – and can make giving up the prospects of Anthony Kay and Simeon Woods Richardson harder, because the Mets have so far only gotten 11 starts from Stroman.

But if MLB returns, Stroman will be a tool for the Mets chance to reach the playoffs, especially after losing Noah Syndergaard during the spring to undergo Tommy John’s surgery.

Jacob deGrom and Steven Matz are the only healthy starting pitchers the Mets currently have under a contract for next year, so Stroman can also audition to continue performing next season.

The Mets can also extend Stroman before it enters the open market, but a shorter season, coupled with the unknown financial impact of work stoppage related to the corona virus – and the fact that Stroman will be a free agent for the first time – makes the extension before until the end of the season less maybe.

In a potentially short season, Stroman will be behind deGrom, with Matz and newcomers Rick Porcello and Michael Wacha completing the rotation.

Stroman’s performance at the end of last season encouraged the Mets to be a suitable player for the future. He has 2.91 ERA for six starts after the rocky first month after trading and went 3-0 with 1.88 ERA in his last four start of the season – all the Mets won.

Overall, the Mets went 8-3 on a Stroman excursion.

“There is no reason to think he will not proceed well after he has adjusted to being there,” said one of the NL scouts. “Back home [near his native Long Island] seems to work for him and he can really thrive in that environment. “

The Scout is also confident Stroman will play well in a shortened season, even if it makes him start running less into the current year.

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“As long as the Mets are of the opinion, he will get a chance to show again what he can do in the spotlight,” the scouts said. “From the Mets point of view, they really need to get more from him to make up for the young people. It was just bad luck on their side and there were many other teams that shared the same concerns. “

In fact deGrom, Matz and Syndergaard are the only Mets pitchers who started under the control of the team outside this season meaning they have to invest in rotations next season, either with other trades or through free agents.

As of now, the only big ticket items on the Mets list next season are deGrom ($ 36 million), Robinson Cano ($ 24 million) and Jeurys Familia ($ 11.6 million), with Jed Lowrie and Yoenis Cespedes among those who lost book.