The New York Mets were sellers ahead of the 2023 trade deadline amid a disappointing season, and their position could be the same this summer.
USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale reported Sunday that MLB general managers “remain convinced the Mets will still make first baseman Pete Alonso and DH J.D. Martinez available in talks.”
At 20-25, the Mets are 12 games back of the first-place Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East, though they’re only two games off the final wild-card spot.
The last two days sum up New York’s year so far.
SNY’s Steve Gelbs reported Thursday that Francisco Lindor, Brandon Nimmo and Starling Marte recently talked amongst themselves to discuss how to right the ship.
Lindor was adamant the team won’t make the same mistakes as 2023.
Since that report surfaced, the Mets were shut out 8-0 by the Miami Marlins and watched closer Edwin Díaz blow his third save of the season in a 10-9 defeat in 10 innings.
If things don’t improve, then exploring Martinez’s trade market makes obvious sense.
He’s only signed for this season, and quite a few contenders would be interested in landing a slugger who has a .315/.359/.466 slash line through 79 plate appearances.
Per FanGraphs, his .363 wOBA and 141 wRC+ are right in line with his career averages.
Dealing Martinez probably wouldn’t cause a stir within the fanbase, either.
The same can’t be said of Alonso.
The three-time All-Star is headed for free agency after this year, and team owner Steve Cohen acknowledged the general uncertainty over his future.
However, there’s a difference between giving it your best effort to retain a player but falling short and preemptively offloading him.
Purely as a value play, maybe Alonso is better as a trade asset for New York than a long-term piece of the lineup on whatever salary he eventually commands.
