I Didn’t Know Anyone Was Allowed to Sign Right Now: Jay Bruce Returning to Mets – 3 Years, $39 Million
It’s January 10, and it looks like we finally have our fourth notable position player free agent signing. To date, only Carlos Santana, Yonder Alonso, and Zack Cozart have signed as free agent position players to multi-year deals.
Jay Bruce is heading back to the Mets:
Jay Bruce is going back to the #Mets, says source.
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) January 11, 2018
Jay Bruce's deal is for three years and $39M.
— Jerry Crasnick (@jcrasnick) January 11, 2018
Bruce, 30, who was traded to the Mets by the Reds during the 2016 season, and was traded from the Mets to the Indians during the 2017 season, was worth a total of 0.3 WAR from 2014 to 2016 before rebounding to 2.7 WAR last year. The down years were largely thanks to atrocious defensive metrics and serious problems at the plate that he seems to have corrected in the last two years.
In 2017, Bruce hit .254/.324/.508, which was good for a 118 wRC+. The Juiced Ball Era has been especially kind to him, as he’s seen his slugging spike from the .200ish range to the .250ish range in the last two years thanks largely to a HR/FB ratio that has been right around 19%. He’s a nice bat to have for the Mets, even if you’ll suffer on the defensive side for it.
As for that contract, it’s the exact median contract the crowd pegged at FanGraphs before the offseason, and it’s also virtually identical to the deal(s) Jon Heyman and his expert predicted. In other words, although Bruce had to wait, he got the deal he was expected to get. No signs of a dramatic market problem just yet.
Outside of ripple effects spanning far outward, there’s not a ton of Cubs-related impact here. The Mets won’t be getting Andrew McCutchen now, and the Giants won’t be getting Bruce, so that Pirates-Giants trade pairing looks all the more plausible now. The Mets will keep on trying to string together a winning season or two while they still have a good group of pitching, and it’s conceivable they could work their way into the Wild Card race. It’s much harder, however, to see them competing with the Nationals this year.
[***SITE NOTE***: Yes, I’m repeating myself again, but I want to make sure people see this. If you’ve been having issues with the BN home page not showing you the latest posts, make sure you clear your browser cache completely (not just refreshing the page). I am currently working on attempted fixes behind the scenes – it is an especially tricky, frustrating issue – but clearing your browser cache will make sure the “fixes” show up on your end.]
