It wasn’t so long ago that Carlos Beltran was the hottest name on the free agent market. Now, the Mets may have a hard time finding anyone to take him off their hands.
According to Ken Davidoff of Newsday, the Mets “are sending strong signals” that they wish to deal Beltran this off-season.
The Mets signed Beltran to a seven-year, $119 million contract before the 2005 season. But according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts, the deal is back-loaded, meaning the Mets must pay Beltran $18.5 million next season.
Beltran was a tremendously valuable player through the first four years of his deal, hitting .275 while averaging 29 home runs, 104 RBIs and 21 stolen bases from 2005-08. Beltran also won three Gold Gloves during that span, as well as making three All-Star games and finishing in the top 25 in MVP voting three times.
Beltran has managed to play in just 138 games over the past two seasons though, as knee injuries have largely derailed his career. He’s notched just 194 at-bats this season, and has performed poorly, hitting just .232 with little power or speed since his return.
The idea that the Mets would like to unload Beltran shouldn’t come as a surprise, but the question now is who would take him?
It’s not that Beltran is devoid of value. He’ll still be just 33 when the 2011 season begins, and while he can’t be trusted to hold up over a 162-game schedule, he could be of use if given frequent rest. Perhaps Beltran would be better off in the American League, where he could DH on occasion as well.
In the AL East, the Red Sox and Rays are two contenders who could both use outfield help, as could the Tigers in the Central and the Angels or Rangers in the West. If the Mets look for a trading partner in the senior circuit, the Dodgers would make sense, as would the Cardinals, Reds or Braves.
But if the Mets truly wish to move Beltran, they’re going to have to eat a ton of money or give up some young talent. While that sounds like common sense, it’s something the Mets have been hesitant to do with their dead-weight contracts in the past.
If Beltran were the only player on the Mets with a bad contract, they have a big enough payroll to absorb the blow with relative ease.
Unfortunately for the Mets, in addition to the $18.5 headed Beltran’s way, they owe $12 million to Oliver Perez, $6 million to Luis Castillo and $22.5 million to the recently injured Johan Santana next season. All in all, that’s a whopping $59 million owed to four players who could conceivably be of little use next season. For a little perspective, that’s more than the Marlins, Rangers, Athletics, Padres or Pirates will pay their entire rosters this year.
It could be worse for the Mets. Beltran’s contract is not as immobile as the horrific deals given to fellow outfielders Alfonso Soriano, Vernon Wells or Carlos Lee. And even if the Mets don’t move him, he’s on the books for just one more season.
But a sunk cost is a sunk cost, and the Mets have far too many of them to be a properly functioning franchise.
If they don’t start shedding some of their dead weight soon, their financial obligations will continue to anchor them to the bottom of the NL East standings.
