New York Mets need to put focus on trading Zack Wheeler

Zack Wheeler has become one of the more intriguing New York Mets trade candidates. He’s one of the guys they need to focus on dealing before the deadline.

Jacob deGrom trade scenarios will continue to flood your social media feed for the next few weeks. While that’s happening, the New York Mets need to do something far more important. They need to turn their attention to trading Zack Wheeler.

When I first heard someone bring up the notion of trading Wheeler, I was curious who could possibly want his inconsistent right arm on their roster. At best, I viewed him as a number four.

Wheeler has been far more than that over the last few starts. Even if he’s just 2-6 with a 4.36 ERA, this barely tells the tale of how well he has done.

We’ve seen three different Wheelers this season. In April, we saw the slightly above average version. His four starts in baseball’s firth month resulted in a 2-1 record and 4.09 ERA.

May gave us the Wheeler we like to forget about. His four starts there returned a 0-3 record and 6.43 ERA.

It was in June when we got to see a much better Wheeler. He made six starts in the month and came away with a 0-2 record but an impressive 3.26 ERA. Already in one July start, Wheeler has a 2.84 ERA and a no-decision thanks to a blown save by the bullpen.

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Wheeler has been subjected to some tough luck this year. To see him pitch so well at times and have nothing to show for it in the win column is surely frustrating. He’s not quite at the level of deGrom to voice his frustration. You can guarantee he’s feeling it even with sealed lips.

A player like Wheeler won’t get back anything significant in a trade, but that’s not to say he has zero trade value at all. The pitcher market is thin this summer. Someone will overpay for Wheeler.

Looking back at last year’s Mets trades, they made several deals where all they got back was a single prospect. None of the guys they added were rated highly and that’s because those men were rentals.

Wheeler is more than a guy who can help a team in 2018. He’s under control again in 2019. This has to be worth more than Curtis Granderson was last year, right?

During this season’s efforts to make trades and rebuild this team’s future, trading Wheeler should become a priority for the Mets. I like the idea of having him in 2019 as well, but I also don’t think this team is well-suited to turn things around so quickly.

Wheeler is replaceable and pitching better than he has in a long time. To get the most out of him, it may make sense to sell high.

Next: Possible Noah Syndergaard trade destinations

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