On Thursday, the Mets posted a video on social media of Curtis Granderson thanking employees for all the time they spend making everything run smoothly at Citi Field.
As it turns out, he was saying goodbye a few days early.
Mets general manager Sandy Alderson continued to shed veterans on expiring contracts Friday night, dealing Granderson along with cash considerations to the Dodgers for either cash considerations or a player to be named later. Alderson and manager Terry Collins told Granderson about the move during the Mets’ 3-1 loss to the Marlins.
“It’s the first time I’ve been moved during the course of the season,” said the 36-year-old Granderson, who has spent the past eight years in New York, four with the Mets and four with the Yankees. “It’s a little bittersweet, but to get the opportunity to play in the postseason, it’s going to be exciting.”
The well-liked Granderson joins Neil Walker, Addison Reed, Jay Bruce and Lucas Duda as veterans traded away to contenders. Reed, Bruce and Duda, all traded before the July 31 deadline, brought back five minor league pitchers, while Walker was dealt to the Brewers for a player to be named later.
Walker was the only trade in which the Mets paid for part of the player’s remaining salary. It is uncertain how much the Mets will be picking up on what Granderson is owed. Catcher Rene Rivera could be next. The Mets and Astros have discussed a deal for him, according to sources. Struggling Astros catcher Brian McCann went on the disabled list on Aug. 14 with right knee soreness.
“This is hard for these guys. We started spring training with tremendous expectations, and they all had them themselves,” Collins said. “All of a sudden you look around, there’s new people everywhere. It’s a little bit of a culture shock for some of our guys.”
“It’s strange,” Michael Conforto said. “It feels like a long time ago when we had everyone healthy and the guys we traded away [were here].”
Granderson, hitting .228 with 19 home runs, 52 RBIs and an .815 OPS after a slow start, hit the jackpot. He leaves a Mets club that is 14 games under .500 for the best-in-baseball Dodgers, the favorite to win the World Series. He likely will be used off the bench as a pinch-hitter and extra outfielder for Los Angeles (86-34), which is 19 games ahead of the Rockies in the NL West.
Granderson — whose final Mets at-bat was a grand slam Thursday against the Yankees — leaves Flushing having helped the Mets reach the playoffs twice, win the NL East once and get to the World Series once. His best season was 2015, when he posted a .259/.364/.457 slash line with a .821 OPS, 26 home runs and 70 RBIs, keeping the Mets afloat before the reinforcements arrived back from injury or on the trade front. He signed a four-year, $60 million contract before the 2014 season, and played in at least 150 games each of the next three years.
“All the things they said, that we talked about doing, I think we did except for winning the final thing,” Granderson said.
He was most valued for his professionalism and durability at a time when so many key Mets were lost to injuries over the last few years. And his leadership, for a team with so many young players, was just as important.
“I know Grandy’s played a part in everybody’s development,” Conforto said. “It’s definitely not fun. It’s tough to see him go. He’s been here since I’ve been here, he’s had a positive energy throughout the time I’ve been here. He comes to the field with that same attitude every day. He keeps it light in here.
“We’ll definitely remember the way he goes about his business, and hopefully try to do some things like he does.”
— additional reporting by Kevin Kernan