2 Mets trade additions from the 2023 deadline are headed into free agency

New York Mets fans will remember the 2023 season as one of the most disappointing in the team's history but the beginning of a further strengthening of the farm system. During a trade deadline atypical for a team with the highest payroll in baseball, the team was able to strengthen the top of its farm system with three high-level players, Drew Gilbert, Ryan Clifford, and Luisangel Acuña, as well as other players who provided depth to the team minor league circuit of the organization.

For years, the Mets lacked real talent in their farm system and a player development program that would raise the level of the team for the future. But among these acquisitions, some players had short-term contracts and now two key pieces of that trade deadline are free agents in the minor leagues.

Players acquired in the Mark Canha and Dominic Leone trades are free agents this offseason.

During the 2023 fire sale, the Mets not only sold their great pieces like Max Scherzer or Justin Verlander. At that same deadline, the team maximized the return possible by trading as many players as possible where outfielder Mark Canha and reliever Dominic Leone were traded.

In Canha's trade to the Milwaukee Brewers, the Mets got reliever Justin Jarvis. A 23-year-old reliever who positioned himself as the organization's number 13 prospect immediately thanks to the stuff shown and his ability to generate enough swing and miss. However, the young reliever, who had a track record of making his MLB debut quickly, has had problems with the contact allowed and his ability to generate strikeouts has decreased, an aspect that was relevant to his profile.

Dominic Leone's trade can be considered one of the best that year because the Mets managed to get a top-10 prospect from the Los Angeles Angels organization for a league-average reliever. On the other hand, the prospect acquired by the Mets, Jeremiah Jackson, was at one time the best power hitter profile in the Angels organization, according to Baseball America but within the Mets organization his BABIP, AVG, and SLG have been significantly reduced.

Despite the current result, these trades turned out to be beneficial due to the return achieved. These two cases serve as an example that sometimes in baseball things don't go the way they want even though on paper they look like good business. In any case, the Mets could try to retain both players in free agency minor league contracts hoping that they can develop the talent for which they were acquired.