Rising Apple
FanSided

NY Mets: 15 worst trade deadline deals in franchise history

ByTim Boyle|
NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 03: Jose Reyes #7 of the New York Mets celebrates the win with teammates Neil Walker #20,Asdrubal Cabrera #13,Jay Bruce #19, Curtis Granderson #3 and Yoenis Cespedes #52 after the game against the Atlanta Braves during Opening Day on April 3, 2017 at Citi Field in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.The New York Mets defeated the 6-0. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - APRIL 03: Jose Reyes #7 of the New York Mets celebrates the win with teammates Neil Walker #20,Asdrubal Cabrera #13,Jay Bruce #19, Curtis Granderson #3 and Yoenis Cespedes #52 after the game against the Atlanta Braves during Opening Day on April 3, 2017 at Citi Field in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.The New York Mets defeated the 6-0. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
6 of 15
Mets
New York Mets’ starting pitcher Rick Reed throws against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first inning 08 October in game three of the National League Division Series at Shea Stadium in Flushing, NY. The best-of-five series is tied 1-1. (ELECTRONIC IMAGE) AFP PHOTO/Don EMMERT (Photo by Don EMMERT / AFP) (Photo by DON EMMERT/AFP via Getty Images)

10) NY Mets Worst Trade Deadline Deals: Rick Reed to the Minnesota Twins for Matt Lawton

I feel Rick Reed is one of the most underrated pitchers in Mets history. A winning percentage of .621 with the club which is second to only Dwight Gooden, Reed was one of the most important players on the late 1990s clubs. In 2001, his time in New York came to an end when he was traded on July 30 to the Minnesota Twins for outfielder Matt Lawton.

Reed was, yet again, having a nice year for the Mets. In 20 starts, he was 8-6 with a 3.48 ERA. Reed wasn’t as successful in Minnesota to finish out the year. In 12 starts with them, Reed went 4-6 with a 5.19 ERA. He would go on to have a nice regular season in 2002 but pitched two duds in the postseason for the Twins.

Lawton had what could be considered an equivalent turn. Before heading to the Big Apple, Lawton was hitting .293/.396/.439 with 10 home runs in 444 plate appearances. Much like Reed, he didn’t find much success with his new team.

Lawton batted .246/.352/.366 in his 213 trips to the plate with the Mets. To make matters worse, he was traded in December to the Cleveland Indians as part of a far more infamous deal.

Remember Roberto Almora’s time in Flushing? Lawton was one of the pieces the Mets moved to get him.

While a pretty even deal on paper, this trade makes the list because of how little it brought back. Considering how terrific Reed was pitching, it would have been more beneficial to land an outfielder who performed much better than Lawton did.

Home/New York Mets All-Time Lists

Schedule