New York Mets Acquire Promising Center Fielder in Trade With Rays

The New York Mets have acquired a promising center field option in a deal with the Tampa Bay Rays, a source confirms to Mets On SI.

Sep 19, 2024; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Jose Siri (22) runs the bases against the Boston Red Sox in the third inning at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The New York Mets have made their first significant move of the offseason so far, which came via the trade market.

The Mets are acquiring center fielder Jose Siri from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for minor league pitcher Eric Orze, as a source confirmed to Mets On SI.

MLB.com's Anthony DiComo was the first to report on this deal being made.

Siri is coming off a poor offensive season in Tampa Bay, but he was still excellent defensively. The 29-year-old finished with 16 Outs Above Average, which was tied for the second-highest total among center fielders in baseball.

At the plate, the right-handed bat slashed an anemic .187/.255/.366 with a .621 OPS in 130 games. However, he did slug 18 home runs and drive in 47 RBIs while producing a 1.8 bWAR.

Despite dealing with a slew of injuries in 2023, Siri endured much better offensive production, where he posted a .761 OPS, 25 homers and 56 RBIs in 101 games with the Rays.

With Harrison Bader hitting the free agent market, the Mets were in need of another center fielder to pair with Tyrone Taylor ahead of the 2025 season. Taylor essentially took over starting duties in center down the stretch and in the postseason, but it made sense for New York to bring in an additional option to split time out there.

The added bonus is that Siri comes along with three more years of club control. He will be under contract with the Mets through the 2027 season, barring him being dealt again down the line.

This is the second time since July, where Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns has swung a deal with the Rays. The first trade between the two sides saw righty reliever Phil Maton land in Queens a few weeks before last season's July 30 trade deadline.

The Mets chose to part ways with Orze, a 27-year-old right-handed reliever, who had a 2.92 ERA and 84 strikeouts in 61.2 innings (43 appearances) with Triple-A Syracuse last year. Orze was considered a promising minor league arm in the past, but has received minimal big-league experience up until this point (1.2 innings).