We’re only a little over a week before the MLB Trade Deadline and there are plenty of teams that need help. However, the Mets are in a major pickle. They’re in first place in the NL East but Baseball Reference’s prediction for the second half of the season is that the Mets finish third in the standings and miss out on the playoffs. Currently, Jacob deGrom is on the Injured List along with their big signing in Francisco Lindor.
However, somehow, some way, the Mets just came from behind in two straight games against NL Central opponents and believe it or not, are still in first place in the NL East with a 49-42 record. No one knows how long deGrom and Lindor will be out. But what we do know is that the Mets need help. Maybe their offense is starting to click but after watching the entire first half of the season, it’s hard to believe the Mets offense will do enough especially with the starting pitching and relief pitching falling off.
I say relief pitching because now Edwin Diaz has blown three straight saves and has completely lost his confidence. On July 20, in the second half of the season, the Mets will be pitching Robert Stock, a man with a 7.88 ERA on the season with an 0-2 record. The day before that, they had to settle for Jerad Eickhoff who has been a complete disaster on the hill in his last couple of seasons in the bigs.
Carlos Carrasco and Noah Syndergaard will return eventually for the Mets but the team can’t wait for it. They need to go out and make a splash. Pat Ragazzo of Sports Illustrated released news that the Mets are looking to make a “big splash” at the deadline. The two pieces they’re looking at are Kris Bryant for third base and Jose Berrios for a starter spot. To win the division and make the playoffs, the Mets are willing to exceed the luxury tax as long as the deal makes sense.
These players like Bryant and Berrios won’t be easy pick-ups. The Cubs and Twins will be asking for solid prospects in return but if the Mets are able to pull these guys without giving up their top prospects, knowing they can keep control of Bryant and Berrios in the long term, these deals would make sense. Kris Bryant has been linked to the Mets since Spring Training because there were questions about JD Davis’ fielding ability. There’s no questions about his bat but certainly, the Mets need better fielding especially with Lindor out.
Bryant is capable of playing the corner outfield positions, third base and first base, giving the Mets plenty of flexibility moving forward. Bryant is also hitting .265 with 16 home runs and 48 RBI’s. He’s got an OPS of .835 and has smoked left-handed pitching, which is an area the Mets have struggled this season. On the other hand, Jose Berrios has filthy stuff but hasn’t been all that great this season.
The Mets are hoping they can jump on him during a poor stretch and then “fix” him. Pitching coach Jeremy Hefner worked with Berrios in Minnesota and rumor has it that Hefner has asked for Berrios behind the scenes. Berrios has 26 strikeouts in his last 20 innings of work and has gone six or more innings in all three of those games despite allowing 10 earned runs. At this point, the Mets will be active. Who they’ll get is a mystery but they’ll be a name that pops up plenty of times when the deadline approaches. They’re hanging on right now with ugly and gritty wins. But it’d be nice to get some easy 8-1 wins here and there.