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For a change Francisco Rodriguez will have the fans’ permission to squander a lead at Citi Field.
The former Mets closer is back in town, five weeks removed from the trade that sent him to the Brewers for future considerations. Milwaukee opens a three-game series with the Mets tonight.
As the setup man for a first-place team, Rodriguez has thrived: He has a 2.03 ERA in 14 appearances since the trade, though he has blown his only two save opportunities.
It hasn’t gone as well for the Mets, who have the worst bullpen ERA in the majors in August after finding initial success post-Rodriguez.
“We knew when he left, you really can’t replace him, and everybody had to pick up the slack,” said Jason Isringhausen, who has converted seven of eight save opportunities since K-Rod’s departure.
The Mets made the trade largely to avoid the specter of Rodriguez’s vesting option — which he has since waived with the Brewers, allowing him to become a free agent after the season. Had he remained with the Mets, a $17.5 million payout for 2012 would have been triggered had he finished 55 games.
According to Mets manager Terry Collins, the righty had interest in making the vesting option disappear earlier, but that never materialized.
“There were a couple of nights he was unhappy he didn’t get in a game he thought he should have gotten in. We had him warming up and we made the deal in spring training that when he got ready, once he got warmed up, I was going to put him in,” Collins said. “I kind of used five and under as a rule. If it’s five runs I’m putting him in. One night we got up six and he didn’t get in and he came in that night and said, ‘How do we get rid of this [option]?’ I said, ‘I don’t know, that’s not my territory.’ ”
An industry source indicated it’s possible the Mets and Rodriguez could have worked out a deal to eliminate the option had the pitcher’s new agent, Scott Boras, been given time to negotiate with the team. But within days of Rodriguez firing agent Paul Kinzer and replacing him with Boras, general manager Sandy Alderson orchestrated the trade with Milwaukee.
Alderson was in a hurry to deal because Kinzer had never submitted Rodriguez’s no-trade list of 10 teams to MLB. Fearing Boras would soon discover the gaffe and throw up a roadblock that might hinder the Mets from making a trade, Alderson got a deal done.
“[The Brewers] have got a great run going, and I know Frankie has helped immensely,” Collins said. “There is no doubt in my mind that you’re going to look up next year somewhere and he’s going to be a closer again.”
To his teammates, Rodriguez became a different person after his arrest for punching the grandfather of his children during a postgame argument at Citi Field last August. The change was appreciated in the clubhouse.
“He seemed much different to me,” R.A. Dickey said. “He seemed a lot more approachable and congenial. He smiled more and laughed more. There was a lot about him that was different for the better. I know he did a lot of work therapy-wise. What he presented the team with was a different kind of guy.”
Dickey said he’s happy Rodriguez landed in a good situation.
“Usually, 90 percent of the time, you want what’s well for your teammates: You want them to do well,” Dickey said. “For him it’s no different. I want him to succeed and I’m for him. I know his time in New York was fairly tumultuous, but at the same time we get to see a different side than a lot of people.”