NY Mets: Ranking the top 10 trade targets this offseason

The New York Mets have many questions awaiting them this offseason: who will be running the front office moving forward? Which stars will the team retain? Can the Mets do enough to bounce back from their nightmarish second half of 2021?

With lots of looming decisions and the unknown of the CBA which expires on December 1st, the Mets have their work cut out for them. There are enough positives to build upon, but enough negatives to warrant concern and while many of the talks about the roadmap to the playoffs have centered around which free agents the team should pursue, the trade market is flush with talent that could provide a huge boost in Flushing.

The Mets’ trade deadline approach during 2021 was a bit puzzling as the team was in need of pitching, but instead opted to trade outfield prospect Pete Crow Armstrong for Javier Baez who, while providing a nice boost on the field, stirred up some controversy as well. There were some who believed that last year was the year to move any of the core pieces due to their high trade value coming off the truncated 2020 season. However, the team opted to roll with the likes of J.D. Davis, Dom Smith, and Jeff McNeil to name a few. That decision, while understandable at the time, proved to hurt them as those players grossly underperformed and diminished their trade value heading into the winter. That isn’t to say there’s no value at all, but certainly nothing that would match what those players could’ve received if they had been shipped last offseason.

Who could we see the New York Mets trade for this offseason?

Many indications have pointed towards a Baez return and while that would provide more beneficial than costly (depending on the contract), the Mets should be looking to improve in multiple areas via the trade market by using some of their core pieces and lower-level prospects as chips. The farm system, already thin on talent at the mid-level, is in the process of being rebuilt and it would behoove the club to minimize the prospects they trade. However, between the players currently on the roster and some raw, lower-level prospects, the Mets have potential to get some value back in a trade.

Here are the top ten players the Mets should look to acquire this offseason.