Mets Reportedly Unwilling to Make These Specific Deals With Trade Deadline Looming

The Mets are being picky about the players they're willing to deal during this year's trade deadline.

Feb 15, 2024; Tampa, FL, USA; New York Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns talks with media at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports / Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Mets’ success over the past two months has placed them in position to make the playoffs, and made them likely buyers at this year’s trade deadline. 

However, that doesn’t mean Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns will be willing to part with his team’s future to improve their present. 

A July 23 article from The Athletic’s Will Sammon noted that the Mets aren’t looking to trade any top prospects at the deadline. 

“If the Mets stay in playoff contention, they will look to add to their bullpen, but it would be surprising if they traded top prospects for a rental reliever,” Sammon wrote. 

Sammon noted that Stearns avoided parting ways with prospects to acquire elite relievers when he was with the Milwaukee Brewers. Therefore, top Mets prospects like Jett Williams, Luisangel Acuña, and Brandon Sproat appear likely to remain in the Mets’ organization once the July 31 deadline arrives.

Prospects aren’t the only players New York wants to keep around. Sammon wrote, “The Mets would be reluctant to deal from their starting rotation unless they get an offer that they deem too good to pass up.”

This is somewhat surprising, considering that the Mets have a stable of solid starting pitchers, two of whom (Luis Severino and Jose Quintana) will be free agents after the season. Considering the need that some contending teams have for starting pitching, trading away one of their veteran starters for, say, some added outfield depth could make sense, given that it's unknown when outfielder Starling Marte will make his return from a knee injury. 

Perhaps Kodai Senga making his 2024 MLB debut later this week will convince Stearns that he can part ways with another starting pitcher to bolster his roster elsewhere for a playoff push.