Former MLB Executive Urges Mets To Sell At Trade Deadline

With less than a month to go before the trade deadline on Aug. 3, the New York Mets are widely expected to be sellers after a horrendous first half of the season.

Former Major League Baseball executive and current columnist for The Athletic, Jim Bowden, released an article regarding the latest trade buzz and named which teams should be sellers as well as best fits for contenders. He urged the Mets to sell.

“The Mets should be selling at this point and must be hoping that Freddy Peralta starts pitching a lot better, as his trade value has dropped considerably after his ERA ballooned into the high 4s as his velocity dropped across the board,” Bowden wrote Monday.

New York has plenty of talent that could be moved, most notably right-handed starter Freddy Peralta, who hasn’t pitched up to his standards in a contract year. The two-time All-Star is 5-7 with a 4.68 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 98 strikeouts to 39 walks through 19 starts (100 innings).

Bowden lists the Chicago Cubs as a team that could realistically go after Peralta but named the San Diego Padres as the best suitor for the veteran’s services if the team isn’t interested in paying the price for Detroit Tigers lefty Tarik Skubal or Minnesota Twins righty Joe Ryan.

“Rather than swing for Skubal or Ryan, the Padres are more likely to take a chance they can get Peralta back on track, given that the prospect price to acquire him will be much lower than it was before the season.”

Bowden named five other Mets that would be the best fit for contending teams: left-handed reliever A.J. Minter to the Milwaukee Brewers, right-handed reliever Luke Weaver to the Pittsburgh Pirates, infielder Jorge Polanco and righty reliever Huascar Brazoban to the Seattle Mariners and center fielder Luis Robert Jr. to the Texas Rangers.

The Brewers need bullpen depth and are likely searching for another lefty – Minter fits the bill and has been lights-out over 17 games (14 innings) with a 0.53 ERA and 0.65 WHIP.

Just like Milwaukee, the Pirates are in search of high-end bullpen reinforcements, and Weaver has been New York’s best leverage reliever. He is 2-1 with a 1.89 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 42 strikeouts to 11 walks through 36 appearances (38 innings).

Seattle is seeking a right-handed bat and a high-leverage reliever. Polanco played poorly over his first couple of weeks in New York before missing nearly three months of action with different injuries but made his return two games ago and hit safely in both contests.

Brazoban has been highly effective as an opener and late-game reliever despite his ERA ballooning from a recent outing. He still has a 2.86 ERA and 1.14 WHIP through 37 games (44 innings).

The Rangers are missing center fielder Wyatt Langford and could use some thump. Bowden lists Robert as a possible solution, and he should be back from injury soon.

“The Rangers might be willing to offer a package of left-hander Dalton Pence and outfielder Paxton King to make the trade work from the Mets side of things.”

Although Robert has shown greatness at times in his career, getting Texas’ No. 12 and No. 21 prospects for a guy who has a .656 OPS and is a free agent after this season would be a win for the Mets.