The GM Meetings don’t usually bring the same fireworks as the Winter Meetings, but this week could be different with the impending lockout hanging over everything. The Mets may not technically have a general manager, but David Stearns is expected to be there, working the room, starting conversations, and maybe even lining up a deal over a bottle of Zima.
That makes the next few days a useful time to sort through what kind of trade talk actually makes sense for New York. Some ideas are practical.
Some are aggressive. And some would be a mistake the Mets should avoid.
One realistic move would be to send Mark Vientos somewhere for a prospect and a bag of balls. Vientos can’t be on the roster next year, and the Mets would be making the same mistake if they bought into him for a second straight season after a poor one.
The team has already shown little interest in keeping him around, which makes him a clear trade-and-cut candidate if needed. He is a non-tender candidate, but the Mets shouldn’t be in a rush to let him walk for nothing.
There should be a market for a low-level prospect in exchange for a closer look at him. The Arizona Diamondbacks stand out as a possible fit, especially after getting some of the worst offensive production in baseball from first basemen and designated hitters last season.
Their .636 OPS from first basemen was last in the league, and their .630 OPS from the DH spot ranked 28th.
A bolder swing would be moving Francisco Alvarez to land a starting pitcher. There’s a case to be made both for and against dealing him.
Alvarez keeps flashing the kind of talent that makes you dream on him, but the defense never quite clears the bar, and the Mets clearly prefer Luis Torrens behind the plate. He also doesn’t hit enough to live as a full-time DH, and the current roster doesn’t really give him that lane anyway.
That’s why he remains the most debated trade chip on the roster. Plenty of teams could use him, and one possible framework would send him to the Los Angeles Angels for starting pitcher Reid Detmers.
The fit makes sense, especially after it was reported over the summer that the Angels were looking for catching help.
The move the Mets should avoid is adding any starting pitcher rental. Joe Ryan to the Mets makes some sense on paper because of the hiring of Derek Falvey, but his contract runs through the 2027 season, which puts him in the same one-and-done category as Freddy Peralta was when the Mets sent two top 100 prospects to the Milwaukee Brewers to get him.
The problem now is that the Mets don’t have two top 100 prospects to spend. Jefferson Rojas is their only one in that group, and they should keep him.
Former top 100 prospects like Alvarez and Jonah Tong do have value, and they could help the Mets get a starter more easily if the right deal comes along. That doesn’t mean the team should shut the door on rental starters entirely, but the GM Meetings are not the place to force it.
After the lockout, more chances should still be there. Unless the Mets get an absolute steal, they should lean toward free agency instead.
Jumping early on a rental like Nathan Eovaldi, or any deal driven more by another team’s money concerns, could box them in later this offseason.
In Other News...
Mets Prospects Are Sending Very Different Signals In Arizona
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Bruin Agbayani, Boston Baro, Cole Mathis, Irving Cota, Brendan Girton, Ryan Lambert, Peyton Prescott and Calvin Ziegler have all been part of that uneven picture, with batting and pitching lines that point in different directions. For the Mets, that is the point of the AFL in the first place: a chance to see which prospects are building momentum, which ones are simply getting reps, and which ones still have a little more proving to do before the winter wraps up. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Bullpen Squeeze Leaves David Stearns Facing Harder Choices
Luis Garcias exit after only six games was a reminder of how little room there is for error in a Mets bullpen that was already packed when the offseason began. Signed as a free agent last winter, Garcia never got much of a runway before the club designated him for assignment, and his departure only sharpened the roster squeeze David Stearns inherited.
The bigger issue now is flexibility, or the lack of it. With no impending free agents to clear space and several pitchers still under review because of availability and performance concerns, the Mets have to sort out who fits where before they can even think about adding to the mix. Setup roles and the ninth inning are part of the conversation, but the more immediate challenge is simply finding enough breathing room to make the bullpen work. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Rookie Just Put Up A Season Voters Somehow Ignored
A lot of this years award conversation has centered on the usual big names, but Nolan McLeans rookie season was the kind that quietly forced its way into the picture anyway. The Mets right-hander fit neatly into a broader baseball trend the piece points out, with younger players and rookies increasingly taking center stage while more established veterans get pushed to the margins.
McLean was one of several first-year players whose production stood out even if the award ballot did not fully reflect it, and that gap is part of what makes these end-of-season debates so interesting. Chase DeLauter was mentioned in the same breath for a strong rookie showing, but for Mets fans, McLeans omission from the finalists list is the one that lingers, especially after a season that suggested he belonged in the conversation. [Read more 🡒]