Frankie Lindor – Looking Back at the Trade

3 things about Cleveland trading Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco to the Mets

Why Trade Happened:

The Cleveland Indians tried on multiple occasions to sign Francisco Lindor to a long-term deal but were unable to do so. This forced the Tribe to make a deal with another club so they could recoup players instead of losing him to free agency.

On January 7th, 2021, the Cleveland Indians sent Lindor and Carlos Carrasco to the Mets for infielders Andres Gimenez and Amed Rosario, right-hander Josh Wolf and outfielder Isaiah Greene.

1 – Gut punch 

At the time of the trade, it was a gut punch for Indians fans as shortstop Francisco Lindor was the face of the organization, and starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco was beloved as the city rallied around him during his fight with leukemia back in 2019.  Emotions were high with fans, and it felt like the Indians traded away any chance of success once it was announced. 

2 – Andres Gimenez and Amed Rosario 

Amazing how different the trade feels two years later, as most fans have forgotten about Lindor and Carrasco, as Gimenez and Rosario have been so good for the Guards.  To put it into numbers, here’s the WAR comparison between the duos: Gimenez/Rosario:15.8 WAR and Lindor/Carrasco: 9.9 WAR (per ESPN stats and information).  That stat tells you everything you need to know about how good Gimenez and Rosario have been in Cleveland. 

3 – Playoffs 

Both the Mets and Guardians made the playoffs in 2022, with Cleveland advancing to the divisional round, eventually losing to the Yankees as the Mets were unable to get out of the opening round, losing to San Diego.  Here’s the individual breakdown for each player:

Lindor .200 (2-10) with one home run and one RBI.

Gimenez .177 (5-28) with zero home runs and one RBI.

Rosario .241 (7-29) with one home run and two RBIs.

Carassco did not appear in the three games for the Mets. 

No one in the group did anything of note, with Rosario having a slight edge over the group. 

Conclusion

The Guardians won this trade by a good margin as they have a cornerstone at second base with Gimenez, who has outplayed Lindor up to this point.  That does not include the contributions from Rosario and the two prospects in the minors.  Throw in the health issues with Carrasco, and this trade was a huge win and a building block for the Guardians franchise for years to come.