Mets Enter Trade Deadline As True Sellers With Tons of Market Leverage

[Andres Chavez]

Image courtesy of © Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The New York Mets are currently the only NL East team below .500, completely buried in the division and only better than the Colorado Rockies in the National League. To say that things haven’t gone as planned in Queens this year would be an understatement.

They won’t say it out loud, but the focus of the 2026 season is now accumulating as many young, talented, and, preferably, near-MLB-ready assets as possible. If, along the way, they can get rid of some pricey and struggling veterans, they surely will be ready to listen.

Every case needs to be studied and analyzed individually, though. Of course, it makes more sense to keep certain players than others if they really want to compete next year.

The Mets Have A Unique Trade Deadline Opportunity In Front of Them

With that in mind, the Mets certainly have talented veterans who might be appealing for contenders: Luis Robert Jr. could become someone’s center fielder, Luke Weaver, Brooks Raley and A.J. Minter are all having amazing seasons and have the track record of success needed to bring in something relevant in return, and Bo Bichette and Jorge Polanco are both proven and versatile despite not really performing well in 2026 and being labeled by many as offseason busts.

Additionally, Freddy Peralta is already generating interest despite underperforming with a 5.01 ERA as of Tuesday afternoon. We’re sure the Mets are willing to listen to approaches for every pitcher not named Nolan McLean or Christian Scott.

The primary takeaway from the pre-deadline period for the Mets is not the fact that they will probably be active, but instead, that they appear to be in a position of strength at the moment. There aren’t many clear-cut sellers in the market, as most teams are either leading their division or competing for a Wild Card spot.

Who Will Join the Mets As Sellers?

If we had to name those squads that will clearly sell, the Mets would be joined by the Colorado Rockies, the Los Angeles Angels, the Cincinnati Reds, and the Kansas City Royals. That’s it. Buyers won’t have many options to choose from, perhaps overpricing the precious few assets available.

Even the 43-57 Athletics may want to avoid big sales, since they are just 7.5 games behind the AL West lead and 8.5 games out of the last Wild Card spot. If anything, they may support their exciting young core with some win-now veterans, but there’s a big chance, knowing how they operate, that they decide to sell.

You can also  make the case that the 45-54 Reds, who are just six games out of the last Wild Card berth in the National League, won’t become sellers, further shrinking the potential pool of available players at the deadline.

If the Mets move swiftly and decisively, they have a chance to retool their farm with some quality prospects and still compete in 2027. If they manage to get rid of most of the aforementioned players, plus others, they might get a nice haul and replenish their farm.

With Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, Francisco Alvarez, Carson Benge, A.J. Ewing, McLean, and Scott as the foundation, some savvy offloading process ahead of the deadline, and a good offseason, the Mets could conceivably compete next year... provided that there’s a season, of course.

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[Benjamin Grimm]

I wish I had as much confidence in the Mets front office as I did two years ago.