Grading a NY Mets-Pirates trade of Jeff McNeil for 2 prospects

Maybe it’s because we’ve seen enough Jeff McNeil which has us feeling assured he won’t return much to the New York Mets in a trade. Randomly watching a Mets game over the holiday weekend, it only took one McNeil at-bat to explain to my family how it was actually tame by his usual standards.

McNeil is a fallen batting champion who doesn’t serve much of a purpose to the Mets any longer. His relationship with Francisco Lindor is moot, but with the team already moving Brandon Nimmo, we can expect McNeil to be at the top of the list of players the team will send packing for the sake of change.

Rum Bunter’s Brian Dionisi put together a thought on what it might take to add McNeil. It’s either the perfect trade or he’s buying too high.

Via Rum Bunter: Mets trade Jeff McNeil for Wyatt Sanford (10th ranked prospect) and Zander Mueth (13th) ranked prospect)

Prospects ranked as highly as those two seem like a dream come true for the Mets in any deal for McNeil. Even if it required them to eat a part of his deal, it feels like thievery.

Sanford was a second round pick in 2024 who finished last year in A-Ball. Just a .238 batting average but .342 OBP, he’s a recently turned 20-year-old shortstop with great plate discipline. Meuth was a second round pick a year earlier. Only 20 as well, he had a 7.36 ERA in A-Ball last year working as an opener-style of pitcher with 10 starts and 22 innings. Poor control has hindered him.

We can’t look at the duality of the Mets farm system versus what the Pirates have to understand the trade better. The Mets have Elian Pena ranked 10th for them and Jack Wenninger at 13th. They may be, oddly, two pieces the Mets would be able to use to help headline a trade for a far better player than McNeil. In short, it’s not as great of a steal as it may look to be at first.

Moving on from McNeil is important for the Mets for a couple of reasons. The roster spot needs to open up. Shedding any bit of salary will give them more cause to spend in other places.

From a Mets perspective, this feels like a B+. I’d like something a little more useful right now than two younger players who struggled last year. For the Pirates, their best hope may be for McNeil to challenge for a batting title and give them some good memories. Maybe he even becomes a trade chip mid-year. In either case, it’s interesting to see a team that has shown little indication they’re ready to win a championship try to acquire a player nearing the end of his contract. Give the Pirates a C simply because the mere thought of believing McNeil can make a significant enough difference is blind. The Mets should be lucky to get both players, even if they're viewed as a bit of a wild card.