Mets Get Smart with K-Rod Trade

Francisco Rodriguez and a boatload of cash for two players to be named later may go down as the best trade of 2011. And I don't mean for the Brewers.

Believe it or not, the Mets made a great move by dumping their star closer for basically nothing in return. With that $17 million option looming, it was a move they had to make.

Look, I liked having K-Rod on the Mets. He was a pretty stable force in the Mets bullpen, especially when he wasn't punching out his elders. But there was absolutely no reason to keep him around. If he K-Rod remained the closer, he would have easily finished the 21 more games needed to kick in that daunting option. If he became the set-up man, he would not be nearly as effective (see his performances in non-save situation) and probably would have become an angry distraction (again, the punching thing).

Unless the two players to be named later turn out to be Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo, I don't see how this trade can go wrong for the Mets. The extra $17 million can go towards paying Jose Reyes and other free agents. Heck, they could use some of the money to build another Shake Shack and I'd be happy.

And while many view this move as the Mets throwing in the towel, I disagree. Most closers are fairly interchangeable these days, and now we get to see what the younger and cheaper Bobby Parnell is made of. Unless (or until) they trade Beltran, the Mets can remain on the fringes of Wild Card contention, which is exactly where they were with Rodriguez on the team.

So the AARP members in the Mets clubhouse shoulnd't be the only people thrilled with this trade. All Mets fans should rejoice knowing that we finally have a GM willing to make the smart and necessary moves, even if they may not be totally popular.

And an extra $17 mil doesn't hurt either.