Why the James McCann-Mets deal is good, and why it is bad
On Saturday morning the New York Mets made a surprising move as they signed free agent catcher James McCann to a four-year deal worth $40M. This is surprising because there is another great free agent catcher that’s better than McCann. Phillies fans might be quite familiar with him, his name is JT Realmuto.
This deal made by the Mets is really good for the Phillies, but it could also be really bad. Here are the reasons it is good and bad.
WHY THE DEAL IS GOOD
There is pretty much only one reason this deal is good for the Phillies. Now the Phils have a much better chance at signing Realmuto. The all star catcher that the Phillies traded for back in 2019 was a huge part of signing 2015 MVP right fielder Bryce Harper. Realmuto in his two seasons with the Phillies has been a true star. Here are some stats from Realmuto as a Phillie (keep in mind that the 2020 season was only 60 games, not 162):
192 games
125 runs scored/allowed
194 hits/ hits allowed
42 doubles
3 triples
36 home runs
115 runs batted in
13 stolen bases
57 walks
171 strikeouts
48 runners caught stealing
All stats via baseball-referance.com
The Phillies own the best catcher in baseball and they don’t want to give that up. The Phillies reportedly lost $186M in 2020. Phillies owner John Middleton said that they can not afford JT Realmuto. On Friday afternoon during the Phillies’ new president of operations Dave Dombrowski said, “Everyone in this organization loves JT (Realmuto).” Dave Dombrowski said the feeling in the organization remains that there is a desire to retain J.T. Realmuto. This is obviously a good sign.
Now that the Mets signed McCann, the Phillies now have a much better chance at signing Realmuto. Steve Cohen bought the Mets over the offseason and he wants to make his team better. Kind of how John Middleton was back in 2018, he wants to spend stupid money. For Cohen to sign McCann is a huge step in the right direction for the Phillies.
WHY THE DEAL IS BAD
The deal is bad in a few ways. If the Phillies fail to sign JT, the Mets are going to have a really good catcher in McCann. Here are some of McCann’s career stats (keep in mind that the 2020 season was only 60 games, not 162):
601 games
217 runs scored/allowed
516 hits/hits allowed
87 doubles
9 triples
65 home runs
252 runs batted in
7 stolen bases
129 walks
573 strike outs
127 runners caught stealing
All stats via baseball-referance.com
McCann is really good, as you can tell by his stats. The Phillies will be in some real trouble if they fail to sign JT.
The other big problem with this deal is that $20M is not a lot for Cohen. Is Cohen saving up for someone big? There’s still a lot of good free agents left like Cy Young winner Trevor Baur, World Series cheater with the Astros (but he’s still a good player) George Springer, and many more that Cohen could get. This would be really bad for the Phillies. The Mets are going to be good. But the Phillies can be better if they’re not afraid.
The Mets are going to be good. But the Phillies can be better if they’re not afraid. And let’s hope they’re not afraid!
