213 Miles From Shea

So far the outfield market is looking pretty thin from a free agency perspective. There are a collection of high ticket players that the Mets will have to stay away from, the cheaper pieces right now are all old, and the rest are arbitration eligible so it is difficult to predict who will actually land on the market itself.

The Diamondbacks are apparently over burdened by outfielders, says the rumor mill over the last few days, and may look to move either Jason Kubel or Gerardo Parra, two very different players.

Jason Kubel fits the mold the Mets looking for: a power hitter. In his 8th season, at the age of 30, he broke into the 30 homer club for the first time. With last year being an off year due to AB’s (366), he has hit 12, 21, and 28 homers going back in time. He also hit a career number in strikeouts this year as well (151) and had a down year in the batting average department (.253, .268 lifetime).

Gerardo Parra, by contrast, does not hit for a lot of power, but has moderate speed and a better batting average. In his fourth major league season at the age of 25, he hit .273 overall (7 points below his career average) with 21 doubles, 2 triples, 7 homers over 105 hits. His slugging is rather low, but he does get on base and he is 5 years younger than Kubel.

It seems fairly obvious that the Mets and Diamondbacks will be linked in a lot of rumors this offseason based on the surplus and needs between the teams, but it not clear yet if the Mets will indulge in a trade and if they do, which player do they go for.

In conclusion, Kubel is a player currently in his prime age wise who hits for power and strikeouts. Parra is a player currently heading towards his prime age wise who hits for average and has a low slugging percentage.