3 trade deadline NY Mets rumors they can't revisit if run prevention is paramount

Previous trade targets of the Mets, they aren't worth revisiting if defense is the priority.
Tampa Bay Rays v New York Mets
Tampa Bay Rays v New York Mets | Dustin Satloff/GettyImages
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3) Ramon Laureano, -9 OAA

A soon-to-be former San Diego Padres teammate of Arraez for the latter part of 2025, Ramon Laureano has a $6.5 million team option for the coming year that could always get turned down by the Padres who seem to pinch every penny they can. Despite a good offensive showing with the Padres and Baltimore Orioles to begin the year, Laureano was not a very good outfielder. If the Mets are signing or trading for an outfielder, it should be someone who can play center field. He is not the guy to start the season with. Their midseason interest was more urgent than carefully planned.

The .281/.342/.512 slash line and 24 home runs is good, but the -9 OAA coming from mostly the corner positions is terrifying. Even if the plan was to move Juan Soto to DH almost full-time, Laureano is hardly an upgrade in right field.

Career numbers for Laureano in right field remain favorable with 23 defensive runs saved. At 4 last season, with many of the positives coming in Baltimore rather than San Diego, it seems like he’s on the downtrend and coming with too much risk.

Laureano is already an offensive question mark coming off of one of his better seasons yet. His .855 OPS was about 100 points higher than his career total. The Mets would be buying into an ill-fit likely to cost them more than he could reasonably replicate. Use your trade assets and spare dollars elsewhere.

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