NY Mets Monday Morning GM: A new all-time great deadline trade?

The trade deadline has now passed us and the focus of the New York Mets will go from what they can do to improve the roster to how they can win with the guys they already have in-house. There are no big splashes coming to Flushing. This is it!

Even though we can’t fully say whether or not the Mets made any new all-time great franchise trade deadline moves, it’s not too soon to pass some early judgments. We do this every day in our lives. Why not with baseball?

I do think there is at least one move made by the Mets this season which could bump a trade from my list of the 15 best the team ever made. We won’t know for sure yet, but I’m ready to judge a few books by their covers.

The Mets got an absolute steal with Rich Hill and there’s nothing to really dislike about this move

The running joke with baseball trades when a poor player is involved would include a bag of balls getting exchanged for the other. A bag of balls may actually benefit the Tampa Bay Rays more than what they actually picked up in the deal for Rich Hill.

All it cost the Mets was an injured veteran reliever (Tommy Hunter) and a minor league catcher with no real future in the big leagues. Not making this move would have been foolish. Will it end up as an all-time great move?

For the Hill deal to land on the list, I think we need to see consistency down the stretch from him and maybe a big playoff moment. It doesn’t take the greatest pitcher in the world to accomplish either. Anyone can have two good months and maybe even a memorable playoff start. See Bobby Jones for the latter.

There’s little doubt in my mind we will remember the Hill deal as an all-time great trade deadline transaction. Maybe not on the level of Yoenis Cespedes or Donn Clendenon, this trade may fall somewhere closer to the middle on a top 20 list.