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Welcome back to the Mets Beat newsletter! Anthony DiComo has covered the Mets for MLB.com since 2007, including the past 13 seasons full time on the beat.

You’re going to hear a lot this weekend about Jarred Kelenic.

The Mariners, with Kelenic entrenched in their everyday lineup, are set to play in Queens for the first time since 2008. Coincidentally, the series will take place barely a week after the Mets’ release of Robinson Canó. Those are two players forever linked in history, as major parts of the seven-player trade that changed the course of both franchises in December 2018.

At the time, the deal seemed questionable from the Mets’ perspective. By the middle of 2019, it seemed destined to become one of the most regrettable trades in franchise history.

Now? The truth might be somewhere in between. Although the Mets will receive nothing in return for paying the vast majority of Canó’s $48 million salary over this season and next, they have profited plenty from the presence of closer Edwin Díaz, another key part of the deal who owns a 2.75 ERA since 2020. Kelenic, meanwhile, has gone from being a can’t-miss prospect to a maybe-he-might-miss prospect. Over his first 123 Major League games, Kelenic has hit .173/.256/.338 with a 30 percent strikeout rate.

One longtime MLB talent evaluator, who scouted Kelenic as an amateur, noted that he always had small concerns about the player -- mostly regarding the outfielder’s quality of competition as a high school player in Wisconsin. The talent evaluator also pointed to the fact that Kelenic was mostly physically developed by the time he entered the Draft. Scouts considered Kelenic projectable because he had already grown into much of his adult speed and strength by his 18th birthday.

Of course, there’s still plenty of time for Kelenic to become a star. Another notable aspect of the deal is that the second prospect the Mariners received, Justin Dunn, hasn’t pitched in 11 months due to right shoulder issues. While the Mets certainly could have used Dunn in 2020, he wouldn’t be providing any value for them now. None of the other pieces the Mets dealt away -- Jay Bruce, Anthony Swarzak, Gerson Bautista -- gave the Mariners significant value, either. And remember also that the Mets considered including Jeff McNeil in some iterations of the trade. They ultimately kept McNeil, who has been one of their best all-around players this season.

In sum, Canó gave the Mets 1.2 Wins Above Replacement before his release this month. Díaz has provided 2.4 WAR as a Met, while Kelenic, Dunn, Bruce, Swarzak and Bautista have combined to give the Mariners -0.2 WAR. (Seattle did include Dunn in the trade that netted it Eugenio Suárez and Jesse Winker, two strong hitters in their primes.)

This is not, by any means, a celebration of Brodie Van Wagenen’s trade; it’s unlikely ever to be considered a good deal for the Mets, and it still has a chance to be a massive failure if Kelenic fulfills his potential as a superstar. The point is more that the deal might not wind up as badly as many folks -- myself included -- once feared. Forget Kelenic. If Díaz plays a significant role in a deep playoff run this season, Mets fans will surely remember the trade with at least some level of warmth.

TRIVIA

Mets reliever Drew Smith has opened the season with 13 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings. The franchise record is 21, shared by all but which of the following pitchers: 

1. Jerry Koosman
2. Addison Reed
3. Hal Reniff
4. Duaner Sánchez
5. Tom Seaver

A PICTURE IS WORTH 1,000 WORDS

When the Mets return to Citi Field on Friday, they will be greeted by a series of six fresh photographs in their home clubhouse. The shots, taken by team photographer Marc Levine, will feature highlights of the club’s last homestand -- almost certainly including their combined no-hitter on April 29.

The ever-changing wall of photographs came from the brain of pitching coach Jeremy Hefner. When Hefner was with the Twins, he enjoyed the series highlights that Twins team photographer Brace Hemmelgarn would contribute to a wall in Minnesota's clubhouse. He mentioned the initiative to Mets manager Buck Showalter, who was on board immediately. In Hefner’s estimation, it’s a way to celebrate the work of Levine, while also reminding Mets players about the feats they’re capable of achieving.

“Anytime we can showcase the good things with our group, we should be doing that,” Hefner said. “We have so much video in this day and age. Still photography … might speak to you a little differently by capturing the emotion on the face, the mechanics and all those types of things. Still photography is pretty cool.”

As a fan of the art, Hefner appreciated that Hemmelgarn would often seek out unique angles or subjects, sometimes climbing to the upper deck of Target Field to take photos. He’s thrilled that Showalter was on board with bringing the project to Flushing.

“We live in the type of culture where guys are used to looking at themselves, at their pictures,” Hefner said. “I think it’s just a cool thing that highlights the talent that we have.”

THIS WEEK IN METS HISTORY

May 14, 1972: Willie Mays homered in his Mets debut, after the team completed an historic trade to acquire him from the Giants. Mays, who had spent the previous 20 seasons with the Giants (including the first six of those in New York), performed well down the stretch in his age-41 season, but he struggled the following year and eventually retired. His debut game, which included an extended standing ovation from fans at Shea Stadium, was perhaps the finest highlight of his return to the five boroughs.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

• Less than two weeks after the Mets pitched this season’s first no-hitter, Reid Detmers of the Angels added one of his own

• Mark Feinsand polled MLB executives on early-season surprises and Trade Deadline predictions

• Christian Yelich hit for the cycle… again

TRIVIA ANSWER

B. Addison Reed

Reed tossed 14 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings after joining the Mets at the 2015 waiver Trade Deadline, but he could not match the 21-inning streaks constructed by Reniff (1967), Koosman ('68), Seaver ('72) and Sánchez (2006).

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