5 once popular NY Mets players most fans wouldn’t mind trading away

Popularity is overrated. Just about everyone outwears their welcome. Stay around long enough and there’s a chance you become the villain. The rules apply in life and in baseball. After the way things ended for the New York Mets, there are plenty of once popular players the fans aren’t so sure about any longer.

1) Kodai Senga

Kodai Senga’s presence is felt even when he’s not playing. It’s not because he’s larger than life. It’s because with him on the roster, you need to plan for a six-man rotation.

This hasn’t necessarily been because of his own demands, but the Mets have yet to shy away from keeping him on a strict system of getting five days of rest. It can be frustrating at times because throughout a full season it means more openers and Triple-A pitchers starting games for the ball club.

We can understand why this might be a pain. For Mets fans, the frustration with Senga is more about his shrinking abilities as a pitcher. He had one of the most amazing starts to the season. His mid-June injury sent the team spiraling.

Through 14 starts, Senga was 7-3 with a 1.39 ERA. It’s almost easy to forget how dominant he was for the Mets early on. His final 8 games resulted in a 0-3 record and 6.56 ERA. He failed to get through the sixth inning in any of the last 8 starts.

We know Senga can be good but after three seasons, he has become completely unpredictable. His first year in 2023 was tremendous. A lost season due to injuries and setbacks in 2024 had us questioning his durability. Then came 2025 when he had the contrasting halves. Logic tells us he can get back to his best again. Don’t tell that to the fan ready to send him packing.

2) David Peterson

An All-Star for the Mets in 2025, David Peterson is one of several pitchers who fizzled late. He ended the first half 6-4 with a 3.06 ERA. In his last 12 starts after the All-Star Break, he was 3-2 with a 6.34 ERA.

Inconsistencies have plagued Peterson in parts of his career. From season-to-season, it has been unknown what he’d deliver. His masterful consistency throughout 2024 was easy to gloss over because of how effective so many of the other Mets starters were and how forgotten he became in the postseason.

Arbitration eligible for one more season, Peterson is a low-cost arm for the Mets to have in their rotation. But so is Nolan McLean. Brandon Sproat and Jonah Tong should have some role (at some point) in the big leagues, too. Peterson, one year away from free agency, feels unlikely to remain with the Mets after losing favor late in the 2025 season. Trading him could make sense if it means improving the ball club elsewhere.

Peterson’s popularity never rose to the same levels as some others the fans are ready to move on from. More appreciated than beloved, a lot of the praise has turned into questions about whether he is capable of getting through a full big league season without crashing.

3) Jeff McNeil

Some people just don’t like Jeff McNeil because of the way he presents himself. Hotheaded during his calm moments, his temper is off-putting. Crab legs are treated more nicely at a buffet than the way he does his bat and helmet when something doesn’t go his way.

As a player, McNeil proved himself to be incredibly useful yet again this season. What would the Mets have done in center field if not for him? His 28 starts at the position helped give them a more capable starting lineup at a time when he was hitting well. It’s a shame he had to end his regular season in such a rotten slump.

McNeil finished the year hitting .243/.335/.411. He was absent during the biggest parts of the season with a defensive guffaw in center field against the Philadelphia Phillies costing them a game. With several chances to change how fans felt on Sunday, McNeil went 0 for 4 with a pair of strikeouts.

It seems like every offseason includes the idea of trading McNeil. After his extension he signed following a batting title in 2022, McNeil has been less his usual self. Once capable of hitting .300 with no problem, we’re now requesting a .250 batting average from him to reach the bare minimum.

If there’s a trade to shake up the lineup this offseason, it would probably have McNeil and his almost $16 million with a team option going elsewhere. Nothing seems certain, but with so many other veterans locked up to contracts the way they are and young players coming up at the positions McNeil plays, this feels like a stronger possibility. For those who’ve turned on McNeil, save the champagne bottle for the MLB Winter Meetings.

4) Mark Vientos

Mark Vientos’ time as a popular Mets player was short-lived. Promising through 2023, he rewrote his entire narrative in 2024 with a spectacular year. He completely changed the vibe of the lineup. The Mets bought into him fully, even going as far as to prepare themselves for him to be their Opening Day first baseman if Pete Alonso didn’t return.

So much for that.

Vientos struggled in 2025 to redo what made him so special the year prior. He batted .233/.289/.413 with 17 home runs and 61 RBI. No improvements were made defensively. He finished with the same -7 Outs Above Average from the year prior. The organization showed a complete lack of faith in him being able to handle third base in the final days. It seems like it’s DH duty or nothing for him in Queens.

Vientos will wield some trade value because of his monster 2024, age, and the power he continued to show this past year. The value has sunk, though. He could have been headlining a trade for a legitimate starting pitcher after the 2024 season he had. Now we’ll be happy getting a reliever back or a pitcher with the same kinds of questions.

5) Luisangel Acuna

Not a popular Mets player, eh? You seem to forget 2024. With Francisco Lindor sidelined due to a back injury, it was Luisangel Acuna who stepped in to play shortstop more than anyone else. He posted a .966 OPS in limited action while clobbering 3 big league home runs. Remember, those?

Acuna didn’t have quite the same luck in 2025. A season which saw him start the year in the big leagues but go back to Syracuse and later join a revolving cast of characters going back and forth, it appears the Mets aren’t so sold on him as anything more than a late-season roster addition for speed. Why would they think anything else? His bat isn’t doing a whole lot in Triple-A or the majors.

There are only two realistic options for Acuna this offseason. He either stays with the club with a bench role to begin the year or they trade him. His final minor league option was eaten up this season, pushing him to the point where the Mets might have to consider dealing him for a less than satisfying return. So be it. He has been a less than satisfying player.

It’s unfortunate how Acuna was the top Mets prospect only two seasons ago. Seemingly stuck in a spot where he’ll at best be a role player in the majors, the best thing the Mets can do is swap him for someone they can have a little more patience with even if that player doesn’t appear nor has he ever had as high of a ceiling as Acuna.