Even Luis Robert Jr. doubters should approve of this mock NY Mets trade from SNY

A trio of mock New York Mets trades were put together on SNY. One involved acquiring Tarik Skubal and salting the earth of the farm system in a deal that included Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat. Another added Pablo Lopez on a more Mets-friendly trade where Mark Vientos was one of the bigger pieces.

Finally, they finished it off with a trade for Luis Robert Jr. The Chicago White Sox center fielder was the subject of many Mets rumors over the summer. They never did move him, but if the asking price is what SNY proposed, it would be difficult to not pursue it.

In this mock trade, the Mets acquire Robert Jr. for Luisangel Acuna, Jack Wenninger, and Edward Lantigua. It’s essentially a fallen prospect, a rising one we didn’t really expect, and an 18-year-old outfielder whose future is anyone’s guess. Even if you have your doubts about Robert on the Mets roster, it’s difficult to not see the value here.

Luis Robert Jr. remains a match for the Mets and this trade is worth pursuing

Lantingua remains a work in progress and a few weeks away from turning 19, could very well turn out to be a stud in the major leagues. You never can tell with young players when they’ll hit their ceilings. It wasn’t all that long ago when Alex Ramirez seemed like the future Mets center fielder. It’s a worthwhile sacrifice considering the Mets already seem to have plans for making Carson Benge their starting center fielder by the end of 2026.

Benge’s presence in the minors makes a trade for Robert practical. He’s on a team option for this year and next. Acquiring him means the Mets are only committed to one season. If there was to come a point where he’s playing well and Benge is MLB-ready, it’s not impossible to find a role for both. 

Trading Acuna is easy at this point regardless of the contributions he might be able to bring to the Mets defensively or off the bench for speed. It’s Wenninger, a sixth round pick from 2023, that’s the true prize in this deal for Chicago. Coming off of a 12-6, 2.92 ERA season in 26 Double-A starts, the Mets need to carefully ask whether he’s truly one of the next in line for big league innings as a starter, reliever, or just trade bait. In a farm system flush with high-performing pitching prospects, some should end up as trade casualties. It’s up to the Mets to internally decide which ones to hold onto.

Good luck to the Mets finding anyone better than Robert in free agency or on the trade market who won’t command more than a year. While nothing has been publicly stated about the jeopardy David Stearns’ job could be in if the team misses the playoffs for the second straight year, he needs to start thinking less about how good the Mets can be in three years while making aggressive moves to improve them in the present.