With a question mark at shortstop for the upcoming campaign, the New York Mets are still looking for a shortstop that can be formidable to their needs.
One player who they have been intrigued by and linked to for the past two offseasons is free-agent Stephen Drew. However, the Mets won’t take a crack at him unless his asking price goes down. According to Mike Puma of the New York Post, Drew is looking for a salary for the 2015 season that is worth at least $7 million.
Stephen Drew is seeking upwards of $7 million for 2015; Mets could be interested if the price drops significantly, but not holding vigil.
— Mike Puma (@NYPost_Mets) January 6, 2015
Drew has his price demands high, despite his below-average performance during the 2014 campaign. In 85 games between the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees, the 31-year-old shortstop hit .162/.237/.299 with seven home runs and 26 runs batted in over 300 plate appearances. Drew also produced a 51 OPS+, -0.3 bWAR and a 44 wRC+, along with a strikeout rate of 25%.
Obviously, the big reason many teams won’t take a bite at Stephen Drew is because of his asking price. After the 2013 season, where Drew hit .253/.333/.443 with 13 home runs and 67 runs batted in with the World Series winners, the Boston Red Sox, a salary of $7 million would of been deserving. However, with his most recent output, many executives told Joel Sherman of the New York Post that they are wary of giving him a hefty salary in large part to his lack of production.
Sherman obtained a quote from one of these executives, in which they discussed Drew’s lack of spring training and output, which was said to be because of the lack of spring training:
“Fine, you want to say June and July (last year) were spring training for him, well, how about August or September? There was never a time in which he looked like a major-league hitter.”
Whichever way one wants to put it, Stephen Drew is certainly not deserving of one-year, $7 million contact. With that being said, he definitely needs to lower his asking price in hopes of obtaining a job for the 2015 season.
Leave a Reply