Brett Baty, New York Mets (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
The San Diego Padres have signed Manny Machado to an extension and these three teams now need to access their Plan-B.
Manny Machado is going to stay put with the San Diego Padres for the next decade. On Sunday, the two sides agreed to a massive 11-year extension worth $350 million.
Any thoughts of Machado’s future being a distraction for the Padres is now null and void. The Padres have quickly become one of MLB’s biggest spenders. It’s bad news for a few other teams who should have been all over adding Machado to their roster next winter.
With Machado off the table, what is there left for these three interested clubs to do?
1. Manny Machado backup plan for the Mets: Develop Brett Baty into a stud, sign Shohei Ohtani
The New York Mets can buy just about any free agent. Steve Cohen’s endless millions made them an immediate contender to add Manny Machado to the roster next offseason. Mets fans aren’t sweating it. They have an obvious backup plan.
Brett Baty is already competing for starts at third base this season. One of the best third base prospects in the game, giving him every opportunity this year to improve his game at the MLB level is the move to make.
Baty can play every day on a rookie contract next season and maybe share a few of the innings with a veteran third baseman. His low salary can help the Mets pivot to the biggest prize of all, free-agent-to-be Shohei Ohtani.
Ohtani has little to do with the third base situation in New York. But with Machado no longer available, the Mets now have a clear-cut top target to go after.