3 last-minute NY Mets trades to pursue while we wait for the Pete Alonso conclusion

2) David Bednar

Previous offseasons included a lot of chatter about the Pittsburgh Pirates trading David Bednar. It seems to have gone radio silent this year. In case you didn’t keep up with him last year, Bednar was not quite himself.

Back-to-back All-Star appearances in 2022 and 2023 after making a name for himself in 2021 as a setup man, Bednar was 3-8 with a 5.77 ERA last season. Home runs spoiled his reputation. Even with a shrinking hard-hit percentage from the previous two years, an increase in walks and decrease in strikeouts all added up to a very bad year.

Why in the world would the Mets want him? They love their buy-low candidates in free agency. They would gladly do the same in a trade if given the opportunity and the right price. Bednar is under team control for two more seasons. Removed from the pressure of being a closer, perhaps he could be a lot better for the Mets.

It’s purely speculative to think the Pirates would even deal him. They’ve been their usual quiet selves this winter with no haymakers in free agency or via trade. The two years of control raises Bednar’s price tag significantly. Someone young and promising would need to make their way across Pennsylvania for Bednar to come back.