Top 5 Trade Partners the Mets Should Call for Bullpen Help

Once thought to be one of the top sellers at this year’s deadline, the New York Mets have flipped the script on their season and are trending towards being buyers in a few weeks. This is thanks to a remarkable finish to the first half, which saw the Mets go 27-13 over their last 40 games heading into the All-Star Break.

Since that run began on May 30th, the Mets have put together a stretch where they have had the best lineup in all of baseball. Lead by Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo, the Mets top the league when it comes to both fWAR (12.0) and wRC+ (138), as they have gotten great production up and down the lineup.

They are leading MLB in runs scored, slugging percentage and OPS, while ranking second in batting average, on-base percentage and home runs (63). A case could be made to add a second baseman at the deadline to replace Jeff McNeil, but the Mets would be hard-pressed to find a better option on the market than what they gotten from Jose Iglesias, who is hitting .380/.417/.582, with a 184 wRC+ in his first 30 games played.

Iglesias is playing over his head, but if the Mets find a balance between his regression and the positive regression that could come from McNeil, they should be fine at second base.

There is a case to be made for the Mets to find a replacement right fielder for Starling Marte, who is on the IL right now dealing with a knee injury. However there aren’t many viable options on the market, and Tyrone Taylor has at least given them a better defender in right field in his absence.

Ultimately, if the Mets decide to buy at the deadline, there is one glaring area of need that has to be addressed and that is in their bullpen.

The Bullpen Has Been a Problem for the Mets

The Mets have already lost Brooks Raley and Drew Smith for the year to Tommy John surgery and currently have 2024 standouts Sean Reid-Foley and Reed Garrett on the IL as well.

Edwin Diaz is the anchor to the bullpen, but he has endured a frustrating season which has included an IL stint, a 10-game suspension, as well as some poor results when he has been on the mound (4.05 ERA, 10-for-15 in save chances).

Recently the Mets have gotten great production from rookie Dedniel Núñez as a setup man, as he has pitched to a 2.35 ERA in 30 2/3 innings pitched, and Jose Butto has excelled in a relief role since moving from the Triple-A rotation a few weeks ago.

Beyond those two, the arm the Mets can likely trust the most right now in their bullpen is their most recent addition, Phil Maton. President of Baseball Operations, David Stearns, was able to swing an early trade with the Rays on July 9th to land Maton.

Maton might not be the late-inning shutdown guy that cures all for the Mets, but he is a dependable veteran who will be counted on to give them plenty of innings down he stretch.

Barring injury, Diaz, Núñez, Maton and Butto should all be factored into the Mets bullpen plans for the rest of this season. That still leaves half of a bullpen where things are much more up in the air, and New York has already exhausted a lot of their internal options to improve there.

Veterans RHP Adam Ottavino and LHP Jake Diekman have both really struggled this year, and could find themselves on the outside looking in depending on how aggressively the Mets pursue relievers at the deadline.

Diekman in particular is on the chopping block, as he has player option for next year that vests with 58 appearances on the season and he is already at 39. The left-hander has failed to fill the void left by losing Raley early this season, so adding a southpaw could be a top priority for the Mets.

Overall though, the Mets just need viable arms in their bullpen who can come into a lopsided game and not turn it into a nailbiter. Too often lately the Mets have built big leads early, only to watch their bullpen cough up runs to the point where the high-leverage relievers have to be asked to clean up the mess left by the lower leverage arms.

Adding at least two arms at this deadline should be the top priority for the Mets front office, with no other glaring holes that need to be addressed. The return of Kodai Senga should soon bolster the Mets rotation, but will also push them into having a six-man rotation.

This emphasizes the needs in the Mets bullpen further, as they won’t be able to churn their roster nearly as much to get fresh arms, but instead need quality work from whatever grouping of seven they land on.

Let’s take a look at five teams who have relievers that would fit the Mets needs at this year’s deadline.

Detroit Tigers

Trade Targets: RHP Jason Foley, LHP Andrew Chafin, RHP Will Vest

The Detroit Tigers are defintitely trending towards being sellers at this year’s deadline and they are the perfect trade partner for the Mets. There are three main arms who would make sense for the Mets to target, with the best being closer Jason Foley.

Foley’s recipe for success is pretty simple. He averages nearly 97 MPH on his sinker, which he throws about 60% of the time, keeping the ball on the ground. His 52.8% groundball rate ranks in the 89th percentile in MLB. He primarily works his slider off the sinker, but also can rachet up four-seam fastballs up in the zone that have exceeded 100 MPH.

Foley is a pitch-to-contact reliever, who has probably been miscast in a closer’s role. Last year, Foley had more success pitching as a setup man to Alex Lange, posting a 2.61 ERA in 69 innings pitched.

The 28-year-old will hit arbitration for the first time next season, giving whatever team trades for him three years of control beyond 2024. If the Mets are going to trade a significant prospect package to get a relief pitcher, they are going to be interested in finding an arm that has team control beyond this season.

With only 22 career saves under his belt, Foley won’t break the bank in arbitration, giving the Mets an affordable set-up man for the final three years of Edwin Diaz’s nine-figure, five-year deal.

Everything that the Mets would like about Foley also stands to be true with fellow right-handed pitcher Will Vest. The 29-year-old has pitched to a 3.27 ERA this season, as another guy who thrives by keeping the ball on the ground.

Just like Foley, Vest will not be a free agent until the 2028 season, and he would be even cheaper to keep through arbitration. There is more notoriety attached to Foley as the Tigers closer, but Vest has proven to be a very dependable reliever over the last three seasons dating back to 2022.

The final reliever to discuss for the Tigers is Andrew Chafin, who could be packaged with either Vest or Foley, where the Mets could land the two relievers they need in a single deal.

Chafin is an 11-year veteran, who has pitched to a 3.42 ERA across nearly 500 innings pitched in his career. This season, the left-hander has pitched to a 3.66 ERA, while holding lefties to a .204 average and a .531 OPS against. Chafin endured a terrible month of May, which saw him allow seven earned runs in six innings pitched, but has settled in to allow just four earned runs over his last 14 2/3 IP.

Similar to the Mets most recent acquisition of Phil Maton, Chafin carries a club option for next season that is priced at $6.5 million, which could be attractive to the Mets if he had a strong finish to the season.

The Mets could likely acquire Chafin alone for a marginal prospect return, and then look elsewhere to find a more dominant setup man for their bullpen. However, getting both Foley and Chafin in one deal would allow the Mets to upgrade from Adam Ottavino and Jake Diekman in a single trade, while also adding arms that would help them beyond just the 2024 season.

Adding in former Mets outfielder Mark Canha to the deal could even lessen the prospect return it would take to acquire Foley and Chafin, as he is currently on a $11 million deal, that the Tigers don’t have much use for if they are no longer aiming to contend.

Canha has not had the best season, but still has hit well against left-handed pitching and would be a great clubhouse fit for New York.

In a deal where the Mets take on all the money from Chafin and Canha, they could probably get those two players, along with Foley, for two prospects that are outside of their top 10 but inside their top 30, with maybe one more lower-level prospect included as a lottery ticket to sweeten the deal.

Toronto Blue Jays

Trade Targets: RHP Chad Green, RHP Yimi Garcia, RHP Trevor Richards

We still don’t know if the Toronto Blue Jays will be aggressive sellers at this deadline but if they chose to deal some pieces, they have plenty of relievers to choose from.

The best impact arm the Mets could target here is former Yankee Chad Green. Manager Carlos Mendoza is very familiar with Green dating back to his time as the Yankees bench coach, and would love to add the dependable setup man to the back-end of his bullpen.

Green has a career 3.16 ERA, and plenty of experience pitching in New York. He signed with the Blue Jays prior to the 2023 season, while he was still rehabbing from Tommy John surgery in 2022. Green’s contract was extremely complicated with a series of option triggers that followed after last season.

The result of it all, was the Blue Jays exercising a two-year, $21 million club option to retain him through the 2025 season. After struggling in his 12 innings back at the end of last year, Green has picked right back up to where he left off pre-injury, pitching to a 2.08 ERA in 26 innings this season.

Some of the underlying numbers are a bit concerning for Green, who has a 4.48 expected ERA, and has an average exit velocity against of 93.3 MPH, the highest of his career. He has also seen in a considerable dip in his strikeouts, going from 11.40 K/9 for his career, to 8.31 this season.

Still, Green has been getting outs for a long time and would not be phased at all coming to New York in playoff push. Between the prorated amount of his $10.5 million salary for this year, and the full $10.5 million for next, Green is pretty expensive for team that doesn’t look to be in contention this year. By taking on the full salary, the Mets would not need to part with any of their top 10 prospects to get a deal done.

If the Blue Jays wanted to extract a greater prospect return from the Mets, they could include either Yimi Garcia or Trevor Richards in the deal. Both right-handers will be free agents after the season and are currently having solid years.

Garcia has pitced to a 2.57 ERA, with 11.89 K/9. The underlying numbers are very strong with Garcia, who features a 2.32 xERA. His fastball sits 96-97, and has held opposing hitters to a .116 batting average, with a whiff rate just over 35%.

Richards is not nearly as attractive as Garcia, but still has a respectable 3.62 ERA in nearly 50 innings pitched this year. As more of a workhorse, Richards cold be attractive to a Mets team that may roll with that six-man rotation and seven-man bullpen in the second half.

Again, the Mets should not deal from the top of their farm system for rental relievers alone. But if you can get two arms, with one having some control beyond 2024, the pot might be sweet enough to give in.

Washington Nationals

Trade Targets: RHP Kyle Finnegan, RHP Dylan Floro, RHP Derek Law

Trading in division is not always easy, but when it comes to relief pitchers, teams are usually more willing to look the other way and just focus on getting the best possible prospect return in those deals. This is where the Mets would have to spend big with prospects, but it would be to get the best possible arm for them on the board. Kyle Finnegan.

Joining the fold just after they won their championship in 2019, Finnegan has quietly been one of the most dependable relievers in baseball since his rookie year in 2020. The hard-throwing righty has never finished a season with an ERA over 4.00, and has now reached double-digits in saves in each of the last four years.

This season, the 32-year-old is pitching to a 2.45 ERA across 40 1/3 innings pitched. Moreover, he has notched 25 saves in 29 attempts, all while holding his WHIP to a career-best 1.02.

What seperates Finnegan from the other closers at the top of the market, is that he has an extra year of control, whereas Tanner Scott and Carlos Estevez are each free agents after the season. Finnegan would give the Mets an alternative closer if Diaz continues to struggle, or just an elite set-up man.

To land Finnegan, the Mets would probably have to part with a top 10 prospect in their system, or a package of three or four guys who the Nationals like beyond the top-10. The return will be steep, but if the Mets could get an additional arm like Dylan Floro, or Derek Law in the deal, it might be worth it.

Floro will be a free agent after this season, but is pitching to a sparkling 2.11 ERA in 47 innings pitched. Law is another workhorse, who has pitched 56 2/3 innings this year, to the tune of a 3.18 ERA. He is also under team control through 2025.

Miami Marlins

Trade Targets: LHP Tanner Scott, LHP A.J. Puk

The Mets could really use a lefty in their bullpen. So why not get the best possible one on the market?

Miami Marlins closer Tanner Scott has pitched to a 1.34 ERA this season across 40 1/3 innings pitched, notching 14 saves across 16 chances. The 29-year-old was a first-time All-Star, which only amplified his notoriety before the deadline.

Lefties are hitting just .083 against Scott this year, while righties haven’t fared much better (.153). Strictly based on what the Mets need this year, Scott would be the perfect fit, but giving up the prospect package it would take to land him feels a bit less likely. Especially since every contender will be in on him, including the Orioles and maybe even the Yankees.

Instead of Scott, the Mets could look to add another left-handed Marlins reliever, who doesn’t have nearly the same eye-popping numbers but might be a better fit.

A.J. Puk has a 4.73 ERA this season, although that has been significantly inflated thanks to a failed experiment of having him work as a starter to begin the year. In four starts, Puk gave up 14 earned runs in 13 2/3 innings for an ERA over 9.00.

He was quickly transitioned back into a relief role, where he has thrived, pitching to a 2.39 ERA across 26 1/3 innings pitched.

Standing at 6’7″, Puk can be an intimidating force on the mound, and he has flashed brillance for stretches in the past. Still under team control through 2026, Puk would represent more of a project for the New York Mets, but one that has plenty of upside.

If the Mets could land a dependable set-up man like Chad Green, Jason Foley, or Yimi Garcia; Puk would be great secondary compliment to add into the fold. He also still has two option years left, so if things did not work out, or if the Mets ever needed a fresh arm, they’d have the ability to send him down to Triple-A and try someone else.

Tampa Bay Rays

Trade Targets: RHP Pete Fairbanks, RHP Jason Adam, LHP Colin Poche

We close with the team the Mets have already made a deal with this month, the Tampa Bay Rays.

Currently sitting at exactly .500, the Tampa Bay Rays could really go in any direction at this year’s deadline. They are 5.5 games back in the Wild Card race, and have the track record to make a real push towards the playoffs, especially with so many of their injured starters coming off the IL.

Shane Baz has already returned to the rotation, while Jeffrey Springs and Drew Rasmussen aren’t too far behind. With the looming debut of top prospect Junior Caminero, the Rays have every reason to stand pat at this deadline.

But if they decide to sell, the Mets should try to swing another deal with Tampa.

Rays closer Pete Fairbanks is the biggest name the Mets could pursue, as he has been one of the best relievers in baseball for some time now. Fairbanks signed a three-year, $12 million deal to avoid arbitration back in 2023, giving him another year at a very affordable number in 2025.

His contract also includes a $7 million club option for the 2026 season, which holds a $1 million buyout. If you have been paying attention to how the Rays operate, Fairbanks will likely be traded before he pitches on that $7 million option, but Tampa has time to wait for the right deal.

They could deal him this offseaon, at next year’s deadline, or even durinng the following offseason. This makes a deal unlikely, but before the Mets send a big return to Washington for Finnegan, or to Miami for Scott, they should float that package to Tampa for Fairbanks first.

For his career, Fairbanks has pitched to a 3.21 ERA and has 12.15 K/9. This year, he has managed to match his career ERA, but his strikeouts are down significantly (8.55 K/9). With that said, he has still done a great job keeping the ball in the yard, something he has been elite at for most of his career.

Among pitchers in all of baseball who have thrown at least 150 innings since 2020, Fairbanks is one of 12 who have kept their HR/9 under 0.60

Beyond Fairbanks, the Rays also have Jason Adam or Colin Poche who would be very attractive.

Adam is having an even better season than Fairbanks, pitching to a 1.67 ERA across 43 innings pitched. Adam has two years of arbitration after this season, so the cost to acquire him would not be much cheaper than that of Fairbanks.

The most attainable arm may just be Colin Poche, who has a 3.24 ERA this season in 25 innings pitched. Poche is a southpaw, who actually has reverse splits on the season, but has been solid vs. left-handers throughout his career (.194 BA against).

Poche comes with one year of team control beyond this season.

Other Names to Watch

Beyond those five teams mentioned, there is a long list of arms around the league that could be moved. Here are some of the standouts the Mets will surely be checking in on at the deadline.

• RHP David Robertson, Rangers
• RHP Kirby Yates, Rangers
• RHP Jose Urena, Rangers
• RHP Carlos Estevez, Angels
• RHP Hunter Strickland, Angels
• RHP Michael Kopech, White Sox
• RHP Nick Martinez, Reds
• LHP Justin Wilson, Reds
• LHP Aroldis Chapman, Pirates