5 NY Mets players they can trade before Opening Day and what they should get back

2) Trade Brett Baty for a young pitcher still trying to break through

Brett Baty’s trade value isn’t what it was a year ago. It’s far less than it was two seasons ago. The Mets put their faith in him becoming the future at third base. He has continually struggled at the major league level, getting demoted in 2023 and again in 2024. His job was officially taken away by Mark Vientos who put together one of the league’s most underrated offensive campaigns in 2024. Where does this leave Baty now?

Vientos hasn’t quite proven he is a major league third baseman, but it does little to make Baty a more desirable part of the Mets’ future. They have players like Ronny Mauricio fighting for some innings at the hot corner as well. A lot can happen between now and Opening Day. For Baty, the best choice for the Mets is to trade him now for a young pitcher still trying to break through.

As Rising Apple’s Nolan Wright previously proposed, sending him to the Seattle Mariners for Emerson Hancock is the type of move we should welcome. Hancock is a talented pitcher who has yet to fully show he is of much use to the Mariners as a starter. Perhaps a change of scenery could help out just as it might for Baty.

Baty as the starting third baseman again in 2025 feels like a futile effort to make something that isn’t work begin to operate.