Bringing back Kelly Johnson was a good idea

Johnson has been dealt from ATL to NYM again

Two days ago, the Mets re-acquired utility player Kelly Johnson after they let him sign with the Atlanta Braves in free agency. New York sent minor league pitcher Akeel Morris to the Braves for Johnson and cash considerations. Specfically, Atlanta sent over roughly $450,000 in the deal, which leaves the Mets with about an $800,000 commitment. 

Johnson knows a thing or two about New York, as he played for the Yankees in 2014 and the Mets in the second half of 2015. In 11 career seasons, he has put up a combined .250/.330/.420 slash line, with 146 home runs. The 34 year old was once thought of as a cornerstone piece for the Braves way back in 2007, where he hit .276/.375/.457 with 16 HR in 147 games. However, he inked a deal with the Diamondbacks in 2009 to become their everyday second baseman. Since that point, he has seen playing time with the Blue Jays, Rays, Yankees, Red Sox, Mets, and Braves on two stints. 

At first glance, many think that the addition of a left handed batter would help the Mets' everyday lineup against tough right handers, but Johnson actually has reverse splits in his career. What I mean by that is that he is actually more of a balanced hitter against left handed pitching. In over 3,600 plate appearances, he has hit .243/.329/.417 with 113 HR against right handers, whereas he has hit .271/.332/.429 with 33 HR in 1,247 plate appearances against southpaws. 

Aside from his experience, he provides a strong veteran presence in a clubhouse that is familiar with his surroundings. Last year, he played 49 games for the Mets, hitting .250/.304/.414, and making the World Series roster. 

As stated in the introduction, Johnson, at this point in his career, is classified as a utility player. He predominantly has experience at second base, totaling 868 games, but has also seen time at left field, third base, and first base. He could even patrol right field or shortstop in an emergency situation, so this will give Terry Collins yet another versatile option to help fill out his bench. 

The main reason why I like this move was that it presents the team with a nice stopgap option for the month of June until the trading deadline next month. At that point, the Mets will likely be in the market for a top-notch third baseman to fill out their playoff-bound team. 

To back up the points made in this article, I would like to pull a quote by Assistant GM John Ricco. 

Morris will likely report to Double-A Mississippi for Atlanta

"We have aspirations of winning the whole thing this year, so we're not going to sit around and wait," Ricco said after the trade. "We know what this team is. We know what it can be, and we're going to give it every chance to get there."

As for what the Mets gave up, some are upset that the Mets gave up ANYTHING when they could of had Johnson in the off-season for nothing more than a minor league contract. Akeel Morris, 23, ranked 13th on the Mets prospect list coming into LAST year, and even saw a brief, albeit rough, MLB debut last year against the Blue Jays. 

Morris has a 4.62 ERA in 22 relief appearances for Double-A Binghamton this year. He broke on to the scene in 2014 when he posted an outstanding 0.63 ERA in 41 appearances for the Savannah Sand Gnats of Single-A. Historically, he has had trouble locating his pitches, leading to a 5.0 BB/9 ratio. For more on Akeel Morris, check out this article from Adam Rubin of ESPN.com.