An interesting take on the Mets trading for Cliff Lee:

So when I hear reports that the Mets will only trade Mejia for Cliff Lee if Lee provides a negotiating window, I cringe. Lee will certainly not sign for less than what his agents believe to be fair market value. So instead of giving up their top pitching prospect to rent a great starter for a half season, the Mets would be giving up their top pitching prospect for the right to sign a guy to the same contract they could have given him as a free agent come the offseason, and a contract that will likely be an albatross in a few years.

Don’t get me wrong: Cliff Lee is amazing. But he will also be 32 by season’s end, and there’s no way he’ll be this good five years from now. And some team will be paying him as if he were.

That team should not be the Mets. Trade Mejia to rent the guy, sure, because world championships are invaluable and Lee significantly increases the chances of winning one. But don’t strive for the negotiating window. Let him walk and use the draft picks aggressively to try to find a guy who will develop into an ace in the future.

I’m still wondering what happens if the Mariners stay hot and Texas fades a little. This Seattle team was put together with the thought of winning the division. If it looks like Seattle has a chance at that, maybe Seattle decides to take the draft choices at the end of the year and try to find the guy who will develop into an ace. Given the interest in Lee, the probability of that is low, but I don’t think it’s zero.

Hat tip, MetsBlog.com.