Max Scherzer officially became an ex-Met on Sunday when the Mets and Texas Rangers announced the deal that sent the right-hander to Texas in exchange for prospect Luisangel Acuna, and there are likely more moves to come for a disappointing Mets team before Tuesday’s trade deadline.
Now that the 2023 team’s fate seems to have been sealed, general manager Billy Eppler said Sunday that the trades of Scherzer and ex-closer David Robertson do not represent the beginning of a “fire sale.”
“It was a strategic decision,’’ Eppler said at Citi Field of trading Scherzer and Robertson. “We took this opportunity to serve another goal of the organization, which is to enhance the farm system. But I do want to be clear, it’s not a rebuild, it’s not a fire sale, it’s not a liquidation. This is just a repurposing of Steve’s investment in the club and kind of shifting that investment from the team into the organization.”
But the GM acknowledged they likely won’t be as active in the free agent market this offseason as they were this past one.
“I don’t think we’ll be walking into 2024 with the same preseason odds that we did in 2022 [and] 2023,’’ Eppler said. “It doesn’t mean we’re punting 2024. We’re gonna have a competitive team.”
And he said of this offseason: “We’ll be open to anything.”
With an underperforming ‘23 squad that started Sunday six games under .500, Eppler said he and owner Steve Cohen decided the road was too daunting to compete this season.
Eppler said the decision to trade veteran players came because of “where the odds were for the season. It doesn’t mean we’re punting on 2024. We’re gonna have a competitive team.”
How competitive remains the be seen.
And because of the still depleted state of the farm system, Eppler said they would continue to be active in the free agent market but he indicated they wouldn’t be swimming in the same waters they have been the previous two offseasons when they signed Scherzer and Sunday’s starter, Justin Verlander.
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“We don’t want to endure long stretches of being bad,’’ Eppler said. “Generally, with clubs going through a rebuild, you have to endure five, six [or] seven years of losing and we don’t have the appetite for that. We’re not gonna do that.”
Of the team’s stance prior to Tuesday’s deadline, Eppler said: “We’re gonna listen, but our price points are high.”
The Scherzer trade yielded them the 21-year-old Acuna in large part because the Mets agreed to pay down the remainder of Scherzer’s contract so Texas only has to pay him $22.5 million, while the Mets are on the hook for $36 million-plus.
“We used this opportunity to bring a player into this organization that we’re extremely excited about that’s close to the big leagues,’’ Eppler said of Acuna, brother of Atlanta Braves’ phenom Ronald Acuna Jr. “It’s talent that you can’t access.”
Acuna is heading to Double-A Binghamton, where he’ll continue to build on his defensive versatility.
As the Mets look to the future, Eppler was asked if the trades of recently signed free agents might hurt the team’s chances of signing other high-profile players.
“No, a lot of players are very seasoned and have seen a lot by the time they reach free agency,” Eppler said. “If you have a first-class operation and a willingness to invest, it’s a desirable place to be.”
