Mets Make A Major Statement With Deal For Lindor

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When Steve Cohen purchased the Mets last fall, he promised things would be different, with one way being that they would be in the conversation for top free agents and be open to major trades.

The first statement move in the Cohen Era, as well as the second term of General Manager Sandy Alderson, came on Thursday afternoon when the Mets announced the acquisition of arguably the best shortstop in baseball, Francisco Lindor, from the Cleveland Indians.

In addition to Lindor, a four-time All-Star, the Mets received a solid starting pitcher, right-hander Carlos Carrasco, in exchange for shortstop Amed Rosario, infielder Andres Gimenez, minor league right-handed pitcher Josh Wolf, and minor league outfielder Isaiah Greene.

Lindor, 27, led the Indians to the World Series in 2016, and has racked up plenty of hardware: two Gold Gloves (2016 and 2019), American League Platinum Glove for the best overall defender in 2016, two Silver Sluggers (2017 & 2018), and he made the AL All-Star team in four consecutive seasons, 2016-19.

In six years with the Indians, Lindor has slashed .285/.346/.488 with 191 doubles, 138 home runs, 411 RBI, and 99 stolen bases in 777 games. He ranks third in the major leagues with 258 extra-base hits since 2017, and in that time period, also ranks third in runs scored (359), fifth in hits (592), tied for 12th in home runs (111) and 17th in stolen bases (68).

Carrasco, 33, spent 11 years with the Indians, making 195 starts with a record of 88-73 with a 3.77 ERA and 1305 strikeouts in 242 games. He led the American League in 2017 with 18 wins, was diagnosed with leukemia in 2019 and returned during that season to be honored as the American League Comeback Player of the Year, and also earned the Roberto Clemente Award for his philanthropic efforts.

Since 2015, Carrasco is tied for 10th in the majors with 69 wins, 11th in strikeouts (1,001), and 15th in earned-run average (minimum 800 innings) at 3.54. Last season, he ranked seventh in the AL with a 2.91 ERA over 12 starts, and sixth with 82 strikeouts in 68.0 innings.

Rosario was once one of the Mets' top prospects before he debuted late in the 2017 season. The 25-year old took a while to ease into the majors, finding his groove in the 2019 season when the Mets made a stirring late season run. In 403 games over four seasons in Queens, he hit .268 with 63 doubles, 32 home runs, and 148 RBI.

Gimenez, 22, who was the another top Mets infield prospect, came up last season and hit .263 with three doubles, three home runs, and 12 RBI in 49 games.

Wolf, 20, was chosen by the Mets in the second round of the 2019 MLB First-Year Player Draft. Greene, 19, was the 69th overall pick in the 2020 Draft.