"Alex Bregman posted career-low OPS this year" - Ex-Yankees coach asserts Willy Adames is a more desirable free agent
Former New York Yankees batting coach Sean Casey believes that Willy Adames will be a more attractive player for teams than Alex Bregman at the free agent market this offseason. Casey feels that Adames offers greater upside for the potential buyers with his performance this year, while he also highlighted the steadily dwindling offensive production from Bregman over the past few years.
Casey played for six teams over his major league career, spanning 12 years from 1997 to 2008. Since his retirement, he has been working in the media, often appearing as a guest for the MLB Network. Casey also acted as a batting coach for the Yankees during the latter half of the 2023 season.
Sean Casey offered his views on the prospects for Alex Bregman and Willy Adames in the current free agent market in the latest episode on his podcast, "The Mayor's Office With Sean Casey."
"You look at Bregman; after finishing second in the AL MVP voting of 2019 with 41 bombs, 104 RBIs, and over 1.000 OPS, Bregman hasn't come close to those numbers again, and he posted a career-low .768 OPS this year," Casey said. "Obviously, got off to a really slow start.
"But one of the executives was saying that he'll take the guy who is one and a half years younger and played shortstop recently, which is Adames. And they also talked about Adam [being] one of the best guys you can have in the clubhouse. Makes everybody better around him." (09:22)
Willy Adames enjoyed a superb campaign with the Milwaukee Brewers in the final year before becoming a free agent for the first time in his career. He batted .251/.331/.462 during the regular season, with 32 home runs and 112 RBIs as the everyday shrotstop for the Brewers.
Sean Casey feels Alex Bregman will suit the Mets if they fail to sign Pete Alonso
Alex Bregman and the Houston Astros had a dreadful start to the 2024 season before recovering strongly in the latter half of the campaign. He eventually ended the year on a .260/.315/.453 slashline with 26 home runs and 75 RBIs but failed to reach an agreement with his team for another contract extension.
Therefore, Sean Casey thinks the New York Mets could be a good fit for Alex Bregman if they fail to re-sign first baseman Pete Alonso, who is also heading into free agency for the first time.
"What if you moved [Mark] Vientos from third and put him at first, and then you put Bregman at third?" Casey suggested. "That is a great setup."
Mets third baseman Mark Vientos enjoyed a breakout season after batting .266/.322/.516 with 27 home runs and an .837 OPS. However, his defensive ability is a weakness at the hot corner, and a transition to first base or DH seems quite likely, making Alex Bregman a good fit to fill the vacancy at third base.