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3 potential trade partners who could complete the NY Mets' roster

The NY Mets are one of the best teams in baseball. But they should still be active at the trade deadline, and these three teams have players that would fully complete the Mets' roster.
ByNoah Wright|
New York Mets v Colorado Rockies
New York Mets v Colorado Rockies | Justin Edmonds/GettyImages
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Trade talks are likely going to start heating up in the weeks to come. While it may only be early June, we are already starting to see which teams are likely to be buyers and which ones are likely to be sellers. The New York Mets are firmly into buyer territory. They have a 41-24 record and are tied with the Chicago Cubs for the second-most wins across all of baseball so far this season. They’re performing well, but they could still use some reinforcements at certain positions.

One of the Mets’ biggest needs right now is center field. Tyrone Taylor has taken the bulk of starts up the middle since Jose Siri’s injury, and while he is an outstanding defender, he hasn’t done much with the bat. The Mets have been content to roll with defense at that position under David Stearns, but finding a bench thumper could help. Adding a good lefty reliever should also be on the to-do list. A.J. Minter and Danny Young entered the season as their two bullpen lefties, but both underwent season-ending surgery earlier this year.

The Mets could also look to acquire more infield depth. Brett Baty is having a potential breakout year, Jeff McNeil is off to a solid start to his year, and the Mets just promoted Ronny Mauricio. But Mark Vientos was struggling before landing on the IL with a hamstring injury, Luisangel Acuña has struggled with the bat since the start of May, and Mauricio isn’t a proven answer with enough data to his name quite yet.

Thankfully, there will be plenty of opportunities for the Mets to plug these holes and improve their overall roster. These three potential sellers possess talent that would likely interest the Mets and help complete their roster before the home stretch of the 2025 season, which would hopefully lead to a deep playoff run.

3 MLB teams who could complete Mets' roster at trade deadline

Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox are only sitting at 31-35 so far this season. Although controllable players likely aren’t up for grabs (at least for anything short of a king’s ransom), the Sox have some arms that could fulfill the Mets’ bullpen. They have two short-term lefties who would immediately take over as high-leverage arms.

Mets fans should be more than familiar with one of those arms: Justin Wilson. Wilson was part of the Mets’ bullpen between 2019 and 2020, producing solid results. The veteran southpaw is in the midst of a strong rebound campaign, working to a 2.25 ERA, 2.13 FIP, and 1.25 WHIP across his first 20 innings of work (before the Yankees roughed him up a bit Saturday night). Wilson’s peripherals are mostly strong as well.

Entering that game, he had a 28.4% strikeout percentage, albeit with an 11.1% walk rate. But Wilson has been an expert at limiting hard contact. His 85.3 MPH exit velocity is in the 97th percentile of all pitchers, while his 2% barrel rate is in the 98th percentile. He has yet to allow a home run and has a 55.1% GB% (top 91st percentile). 

Wilson is good, but if the Mets want a hurler with a strong track record, look no further than the Cuban Missile, Aroldis Chapman. The flamethrower is having one of his strongest seasons and owns a 1.80 ERA, 2.59 FIP, and 0.96 WHIP across his first 25 frames. Chapman’s 9.6% walk rate would be the first time he had a sub-10% free pass percentage in a full season since 2017. He’s struck out a third of opponents, and despite a mediocre 91.1 MPH exit velocity and 8.8% barrel percentage, he has an 0.72 HR/9. Chapman is in his age-37 season, but is still throwing as hard as ever. He is still in the 99th percentile of fastball velocity at 99.1 MPH. His sinker is averaging 100 MPH as well. 

Chapman has a well-documented trade deadline history, and based on that history, it could cost the Mets a pretty penny if they opt to go this route. He was first dealt at the 2016 deadline from the NY Yankees to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for a prospect bundle headlined by Gleyber Torres. Then he was traded at the 2023 deadline from the KC Royals to the Texas Rangers for Cole Ragans. Chapman would be the more expensive option, but would be the sort of shutdown late-inning arm behind Edwin Diaz that could make the endgame an even bigger nightmare for Mets opponents. The Cubs are reportedly once again showing interest in Chapman's services, but the Mets should seriously consider bringing in the flamethrowing lefty.