The New York Mets sent Kevin Plawecki to the Cleveland Indians, clearing up the clog the team had at the catcher position.
It’s been a busy weekend for New York Mets’ general manager Brodie Van Wagenen.
He completed his third trade of the weekend, sending catcher Kevin Plawecki to the Cleveland Indians, the team announced on Twitter. He previously acquired Keon Broxton from the Brewers and J.D. Davis from the Astros.
We’ve acquired RHP Walker Lockett (@Walker_Lockett) and minor league infielder Sam Haggerty from Cleveland in exchange for catcher Kevin Plawecki. pic.twitter.com/38Zkea38W0
— New York Mets (@Mets) January 6, 2019
It was apparent that either Travis d’Arnaud or Plawecki were going to get traded after the team signed Wilson Ramos. Plawecki is under team control through 2022 while d’Arnaud is a free agent after the 2019 season.
However, with d’Arnaud’s injury history, it would have been tough to trade him. The Mets acquired two pieces for Plawecki, pitcher Walker Lockett and infielder Sam Haggerty. Lockett has 15 innings of MLB experience with a 9.60 ERA.
The 25-year-old has a 4.17 ERA across seven minor league season. He’s a starting pitcher, so he could push Jason Vargas for a rotation spot but neither is a player you want to rely on.
Haggerty is an infielder who has reached Triple-A. The 24-year-old was a 24th round pick of the Indians in 2015 and he plays primarily second base but can also play shortstop and third.
He showcases a less-than-stellar .244/.349/.373 slash line across four minor league seasons. He has a good eye but there are legitimate concerns about if he will be able to hit major league pitching given his minor league track record.
Plawecki has struggled as a major leaguer to this point, slashing .218/308/.330 over parts of four years. However, he has more of a history of good health than d’Arnaud and Ramos has a lengthy injury history.
Ultimately, you’d like to think the team could have gotten more for a catcher under control for three more seasons than two players who haven’t done much in the minors.
