The Miami Marlins have reportedly given the New York Mets an ultimatum for a proposed deal involving starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard and catcher J.T. Realmuto: the New York Yankees must be involved.
According to Solomon Syed of Spectrum News, the Marlins have told the Mets that they either send Syndergaard to the Yankees as part of a three-team trade or they'll send Realmuto to another NL East team.
"Seems the #Mets are getting the ultimatum from the #Marlins- send Thor to the #Yankees or we'll send Realmuto to one of your other rivals. Not MIA's job to do NYM any favors here," Syed tweeted on Tuesday.
Seems the #Mets are getting the ultimatum from the #Marlins- send Thor to the #Yankees or we’ll send Realmuto to one of your other rivals. Not MIA’s job to do NYM any favors here.
— Solomon Syed (@SolomonSyed) December 11, 2018
It's worth noting that former Yankee captain Derek Jeter, who spent his entire playing career in New York, is now the chief executive officer and part owner of the Marlins. Many speculated last offseason that Jeter's franchise reportedly accepted the Yankees' offer to acquire then-reigning NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton over better trade offers.
On Monday, reports from Winter Meetings indicated that the Yankees could be involved in a blockbuster three-team trade in which they'd acquire Syndergaard from their crosstown rival.
According to FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal, the Mets have discussed a three-team trade in which they would land Miami Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto. A possible scenario would involve the Yankees, although his initial report said that it wasn't confirmed whether Syndergaard would be involved.
According to Rosenthal, the Mets aren't willing to deal the former all-star unless they're getting more than just Realmuto, who has two years remaining on his current deal.
The Mets have reportedly been in steady talks with the Yankees since hiring new general manager Brodie Van Wagenen, sources confirmed to Rosenthal. The two New York franchises haven't made a trade since the Yankees acquired Mike Stanton from the Mets in exchange for Felix Heredia in December 2004.
#Mets have discussed trade in which they would land J.T. Realmuto in three-team deal with #Yankees and #Marlins, sources tell The Athletic. Not known if Syndergaard involved. NYM would not part with Syndergaard (three years control) if getting only Realmuto (two years) in return.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 11, 2018
#Mets have been in steady talks with #Yankees since Brodie Van Wagenen became GM, sources say. NY teams have not made trade involving major leaguers since 12/3/04 (Mike Stanton to NYY for Felix Heredia). @JonHeyman first noted possibility of NYY serving as conduit for Realmuto.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 11, 2018
The Mets have reportedly received several offers from teams looking to broker a Realmuto trade and the Yankees' initial pitch isn't the strongest, according to MLB Network's Joel Sherman.
"Told that Van Wagenen has multiple scenarios working to try to land Realmuto from #Marlins and the 1 involving #Yankees is not among the strongest," Sherman tweeted.
Sherman also noted that the Yankees reached out to the Marlins about a Realmuto deal, despite general manager insisting that Gary Sanchez would remain the team's primary catcher in 2019, so it was likely in a broker role to acquire Syndergaard, which he referred to as a "long shot."
"Cashman has insisted Sanchez will be #Yankees catcher in '19. Yet, outside execs said they were engaged with #Marlins. This would explain it since NYY wouldn't be getting Realmuto in this scenario, but rather Syndergaard, though again involved people called this a long shot," Sherman tweeted.
Cashman has insisted Sanchez will be #Yankees catcher in '19. Yet, outside execs said they were engaged with #Marlins. This would explain it since NYY wouldn't be getting Realmuto in this scenario, but rather Syndergaard, though again involved people called this a long shot
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) December 11, 2018
MLB Network's Jon Heyman was the first to report that the Yankees were among the trading partners with the Mets and Marlins in hopes of acquiring Syndergaard.
"There has indeed at least been talk of 3-way where Realmuto goes to Mets, Syndergaard to Yanks. Not sure how likely this is. Seems like quite a gamble for mets — though there are more star rotation options out there than star catching options," Heyman tweeted.
There has indeed at least been talk of 3-way where Realmuto goes to Mets, Syndergaard to yanks. Not sure how likely this is. Seems like quite a gamble for mets — though there are more star rotation options out there than star catching options.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 11, 2018
Syndergaard, 26, is one of the best young pitchers in baseball, coming off a season in which he recorded a 3.03 ERA (2.80 FIP) during 154.1 innings. The Yankees are reported to be interest in adding one more starting pitcher to their rotation, which already includes Luis Severino, Masahiro Tanaka, CC Sabathia and James Paxton, who was recently acquired via trade with the Seattle Mariners.
Realmuto, 27, had a breakout season for the Marlins in 2018, which included hitting .277/.340/.484 and 21 home runs. He also recorded a 126 wRC+, which was the highest among catchers with a minimum of 100 plate appearances.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
