3 emergency NY Mets trade targets if Pete Alonso signs elsewhere

3) Yandy Diaz

Yandy Diaz looked like he finally took a huge step forward in 2023. He had a career season where he hit .330/.410/.522 with a .402 wOBA and 163 wRC+. Diaz blasted a career-best 22 home runs in 600 trips to the plate with a .192 isolated slugging percentage. He struck out in just 15.7% of his plate appearances with a 10.8% walk rate. 

2024, however, was not nearly as good of a season for Diaz. He still turned in good numbers, including a .281/.341/.414 slash, .331 wOBA, and 120 wRC+. Diaz still kept up a strong 15.3% K% but had a sub-10% BB% for the first time in his career (in seasons where he had at least 200 plate appearances). Diaz only hit 14 home runs in 621 plate appearances, and his ISO dropped significantly to .132.

The problem for Diaz has never been raw power. He has been in the 90th percentile or better in exit velocity each of the last three seasons. This year, he sat at 92.2 MPH. But his barrel rate fell from 9.5% to just 7.6% between 2023 and 2024. Diaz has put up a ground ball rate of over 50% throughout his career, and 2024 was no different at 54.7%.

Diaz’s defense at first base is unspectacular at best. This year, he had -5 DRS and -3 OAA. UZR/150 was the least kind to his first base fielding at -9.4. Diaz also has over 2000 innings at the hot corner but hasn’t played the position regularly since 2022. Even then, he was considered a worse defender there than at 1B.

Diaz’s contract is very team-friendly. He will make just $10 million next year. With his potential, only $10 million could be a massive steal. But he also comes with an affordable team option for 2026 worth $12 million. Diaz had two consecutive seasons with a wRC+ above 140 in 2022 and 2023. If he hits anything like that in 2025 and 2026, he’d easily replace Alonso, and for a fraction of the cost.