Mets Acquire Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco From Indians

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This morning on Wednesday, it was announced that the Mets and Indians were completing a blockbuster trade involving Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco. Francisco Lindor is a near top ten player in all of baseball and is argubly the top shortstop in baseball (second on my list). Carlos Carrasco is a valuable starting pitcher and has been for years. In the trade, the Indians traded Shortstop Francisco Lindor and Starting Pitcher Carlos Carrasco to the Mets. The Indians recieved Starting Pitchers Amed Rosario and Andres Gimenez, as well as Mets #9 Prospect Starting Pitcher Josh Wolf and #10 Prospect Outfielder Isaiah Greene. This was a huge trade that wasn't shocking as the Mets have been active this offseason and the Indians have been shopping Lindor, but it definitely is a huge move.

What This Means For The Mets

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The New York Mets have had a lot of hype around their team due to their new owner, billionare Steve Cohen, who has a net worth of approximately 14 billion dollars. The Mets' roster is very strong and has gotten even better this offseason, especially with this recent move. The Mets traded for a star in Francisco Lindor, who is one of the best shortstops in baseball, argubly first. He is a dynamic player and what of the best defense shortstops in baseball, as well as a major offensive threat in the game. Lindor also is still very young as he is just turned 27 years old last November. The Mets also acquired Carlos Carrasco, who is a very solid starting pitcher, who is 33 years old, but is still very good. Carrasco is great and will help solidify the Mets rotation.

The Mets are a very good team and a top five team in all of baseball. The Mets will contend in their division, in 2021 with the Braves and others. The Mets are a legitimate World Series contender and definitely can challenge the Braves, Dodgers, and Padres in the National League. The New York Mets have changed and are not the dysfunctional franchise that they have been since the franchise was founded. The Mets have changed and are finally living up to their potential as a New York baseball franchise that can challenge the Yankees, Dodgers, Red Sox, and others. The Mets have a lot of promise and are looking very good going into 2021, and should make the playoffs if things don't go wrong for the club.

What This Means For The Indians

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The Cleveland Indians have been a very good team over the last few years and made it to game 7 in the World Series against the Cubs, where they lost in extra innings. The Indians have made the playoffs for 4 of the last 5 years, including in 2020. However, the Indians are a small market team that does not spend a lot of money. The Indians star shortstop, Francisco Lindor will become a free agent next year and they would have had a tough time signing him to an extension. The Indians traded Lindor and Carrasco, to shed salary and will now likely enter a rebuild which could last years.

The Indians received some valuable talent including two prospects in this trade, though they definitely lost the trade to the Mets. The Indians received shortstop Amed Rosario, who has been on the Mets major league roster since 2017, and has had some mixed results. At times Rosario showed promise but also has been very disappointing and a below average hitter and defender, including in 2020. The Indians also acquired fellow shortstop Andres Gimenez who platooned with Rosario at shortstop in 2020, and showed promise. Throughout his minor league career, he was always known as a very good defender who is not a great hitter. In 2020, he was a good defender but always was an above average hitter. Both shortstops will play at second and shortstop for the Indians, and will be valuable for the club. The Indians also traded for two prospects who have promise but both are unproven and will not be major league ready until at least 2023.

What This Means For The Rest Of Baseball

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This trade will have a huge effect on the rest of baseball, including many teams and players all around the game.

First, the NL East (Braves mostly). The Braves over the last three years won their division and made the playoffs. thte Braves are a very good team and are still the best team in the division. However, they will face competition from the Mets and will have a hard time. The Nationals and Phillies also will have a hard time in 2021, competiting in the division as both the Mets and Braves have gotten better and have few weaknesses.

Next, the AL Central (Twins and White Sox). The White Sox and Twins are going to be contending for their division this year in 2021 and it seems that the Indians will not. This paves the way for both teams and it will be an interesting battle between the team. The White Sox look like the favorites but it will be interesting to watch.

Finally, the effect this trade will have on the Free Agent and Trade markets, which was discussed when Blake Snell and Yu Darvish were traded to the Padres from their respective teams. This trade could cause a ripple effect where many other players including Rockies' Story and Arenado, as well as Cubs' Bryant might be moved in the next few weeks and months. The Free Agent market also will heat up as teams will start to sign players and will become desperate, as might the players who are currently unsigned like J.T. Realmuto and Trevor Bauer.

The Francisco Lindor trade to the Mets was a huge deal and it will be interesting to see how this effects the game of baseball from the Mets to the Indians to the rest of the game. For more, check out other articles on my website and make sure to check out other pages on my website and my Instagram account, @marksportsmlb