NY Mets Monday Morning GM: 5 boldest moves David Stearns could make next

3) Trade the farm for Tarik Skubal

Talk about big trades, none the Mets can make will be bigger than acquiring Tarik Skubal from the Detroit Tigers. Those rumors have cooled off with the Padres offering a more practical choice of Pivetta and more. It’s reasonable the Mets won’t have to give up any of their seemingly untouchable prospects in a deal with the Padres. The same isn’t true with Skubal who would require a major farm system sacrifice, including Tong.

It feels like the Mets may wait out to see if the asking price on Skubal slides down a bit. Detroit doesn’t need to trade him. And if they do, justifying to the fans why they would sell off such an important part of the franchise will be key. Adding a mix of MLB-ready players and top prospects is the way to go here. The farm will be a bit more barren and so will the major league roster.

The Mets have several players who could help out the Tigers immediately. Brett Baty becomes their starting third baseman. David Peterson or Kodai Senga can fill a hole in the rotation Skubal’s departure leaves. Even Francisco Alvarez would have a place there. The Mets would be unwise to subtract too greatly from their MLB roster in the pursuit of Skubal. One or two MLB players would help the Tigers stay more competitive.

A trade with the Padres or even swinging back to make a deal with the Milwaukee Brewers for Freddy Peralta is the more likely end game here. Skubal will be a Mets free agent target, probably coming off a year where he wins a World Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Yuck!