The Mets and Pirates have agreed to a trade that will send second baseman Neil Walker to New York in exchange for lefty Jonathan Niese, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
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The deal is pending a medical review, but all signs point to it being a one-for-one deal. 269 with 16 home runs last season. Niese, who has a $10 million option for 2017 and an $11 million option for 2018, would not have been a candidate for a qualifying offer had the Mets declined those options, a likelihood given that there would not be a projected fit for him in the rotation.
Although Murphy posted a career-high 14 homers with a. 281 average and 73 RBI a season ago, Walker provides much more stability from behind the plate as he has never batted below. Walker’s presence will also allow the Mets to give 21-year-old second-base prospect Dilson Herrera some extra seasoning in the minor leagues. On Wednesday, Walker emerged as a fallback option. Walker is entering his final year of arbitration, and will be a free-agent at the conclusion of the 2016 season.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have been quiet for the first couple days of the annual Winter Meetings.
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Niese, pushed out of NY by the impending midseason return of Wheeler to join Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz in the rotation, was 9-10 with a 4.13 ERA for the National League champions. In his career he has pitched to a 61-61 record, with a career 3.91 ERA and 95 ERA+ (100 is average) in over 1,000 innings pitched.
