NY Mets rumors: Luis Robert Jr. trade talks reignited, 3 prospects to meet the demand

Munetaka Murakami signing with the Chicago White Sox seemed to reignite old New York Mets rumors of interest in Luis Robert Jr. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported the trade talks between the Mets (and Cincinnati Reds) with the White Sox were ongoing with Chicago looking for pitching depth.

Something the Mets have plenty of, it’s a matter of knowing which ones to part with. Pitching depth can mean a lot of things and with the White Sox feeling at least a year away from actually being any good, especially with the subtraction of Robert, we need to think more in terms of prospects.

Chicago isn’t getting Jonah Tong, Brandon Sproat, or any other upper echelon Mets pitching prospect. Perhaps there are some other more hidden gems in the system who could be paired up in a Robert trade. We’ll let the two teams figure out the financials with Chicago forced to eat a part of the contract. In terms of player capital, these three prospects might be a strong trio for the Mets to answer the question of who’s playing center field in 2026.

Two prospects to offer the White Sox for Luis Robert Jr.

R.J. Gordon

A 13th round draft pick who blew away all expectations last year, R.J. Gordon is absolutely someone who should be on the trade block. He is buried on the prospect rankings behind several of his peers who pitched in Double-A last year. As fascinating of a riser as he is, now would be a chance to capitalize on him after a strong year.

Gordon pitched in High-A and Double-A, combining to go 11-3 with a 3.36 ERA. A 10.3 K/9 rate and 3.2 BB/9 paired up well to make him an effective arm on the farm.

Jose Chirinos

Unranked most places you’ll look, Jose Chirinos is a 21-year-old lower minor leaguer who didn’t make it out of St. Lucie yet. He had a strong season, however, pitching to a 3.20 ERA and even better 2.35 ERA in the FCL.

Chirinos is a young arm the White Sox can try to develop into something more than he was last year. He’s the type of player added in the deal as the lesser known piece who played well which doesn’t seem uncommon in any 3-for-1 type of trade.

Austin Troesser

A fourth-round pick by the Mets in 2023, Austin Troesser fits a different kind of billing than Chirinos in this trade. He’s the guy who just needs a little faith, time, and health. He pitched only 16 innings in the regular season due to a forearm strain before going to the Arizona Fall League to wet his beak a little more.

A higher draft pick who hasn’t performed incredibly well, he’s a movable part for the Mets in any trade negotiations. An incredible 11.5 K/9 in only 65 professional innings, consider Troesser one of those guys who might benefit from a switch to a relief role full-time. This is how the Mets used him last year but in 2024 he started.

The White Sox may be holding out for something better. But three pitching prospects who don’t belong in the trash isn’t such a bad haul for a player like Robert who has questions of his own. There should come a point where the Mets tell the White Sox to get some help if they're going to drive such a hard bargain.