How NY Mets can outbid Reds for Luis Robert Jr. after latest trade swerve

The Chicago White Sox finally seem serious about trading Luis Robert Jr. after nearly two years of an ongoing saga. Throughout the seemingly never ending standoff, the New York Mets have continuously been lurking, waiting for Chicago to drop their ridiculous asking price for a player who is as unreliable as he is electrifying.

Now, it seems a deal might actually happen, but it's the Cincinnati Reds who have taken the bull by the horns and leaped out in front of the pack in order to try and land the potential five-tool center fielder.

The good news is that if the Mets are serious about landing Robert Jr., there are a couple of ways they can easily present the White Sox with a more attractive offer than anything the Reds can give up.

The Mets can easily outbid the Reds for Luis Robert Jr. by giving the Chicago White Sox these two things

One of the sticking points for Cincinnati is the financial cost associated with Robert Jr. The 28-year-old is set to make $20 million this season and has a club option for 2027 for an additional $20 milllion that also comes with a $2 million buyout if the option is declined.

The Reds are operating on a shoestring budget, not wanting to raise payroll beyond the $119 million they spent last season. With the moves they've already made, such as re-signing Emilio Pagan and bringing in Caleb Ferguson, they currently sit at $130 million.

Even if they're able to move Brady Singer and his roughly $13 million projected arbitration salary, as they've been rumored to want to do, they still couldn't fit Robert Jr. in their payroll without it rising substantially. It's been reported that the White Sox are willing to potentially eat up to half of Robert Jr.'s 2026 salary to facilitate a trade.

For a miserly organization like the White Sox, eating any sort of money truly stings, and it's unlikely that an increased return thanks to the financial assistance takes away the hurt for them. The Mets don't have the same financial constraints as the Reds do, and fresh off saving $10 million in the Jeff McNeil trade would essentially already be saving half of Robert Jr.'s money.

So step one is to offer to take the whole contract on, at which point the Mets would be looking at surrendering a bit less to acquire his services.

The White Sox are thought to be eyeing one of three Reds hurlers, top prospect Chase Petty, and a duo returning from injury in 24-year-old righty Juilan Aguiar and 27-year-old southpaw Brandon Williamson. Petty got lit up to the tune of a 19.50 ERA in his brief big league cameo, while Aguiar has just 31.2 major league innings and a 6.25 ERA under his belt, and Williamson is more of a back-of-the-rotation option with a 4.39 career ERA.

While Chicago might be interested in an arm, they need everything, and their pitching is largely regarded as slightly ahead of their hitting. To that end, giving them both a young pitcher and a young hitter could be enough.

Because the Mets would be taking on the entirety of Roberts Jr.'s contract, they'd get a slight discount over the Reds, and a deal including Jack Wenninger and Nick Morabito could be enough to get it done. Both Wenninger and Morabito could be big league ready at some point in 2026, even if it isn't in time for opening day, and would offer greater upside than Aguiar or Williamson (though Petty might have a higher ceiling).

The combination of two almost-ready prospects, one on either side of the ball, plus the impact of the financial savings of not having to eat any money, will be enough to beat whatever the Reds can realistically offer. Now it's up to the Mets to decide if they're truly serious about getting a deal done.