New revelation makes NY Mets trade go from bad to worse with one detail

Until all players involved hang up their cleats or at least leave the franchise, the results of any trade can swing back and forth. The New York Mets ran out of punches years ago from their trade with the Chicago Cubs that landed them Javier Baez and Trevor Williams. Baez left after the 2021 season was complete following a wild ride full of offensive production and thumbs aimed downward. Williams departed after the 2022 season when he dazzled as a swingman in the bullpen and rotation.

No more jabs left to throw the Cubs’ way, Chicago has the potential to give the Mets a real beat down in this deal. Pete Crow-Armstrong is becoming increasingly better as an overall player, already considered to be one of the best defensive players in the game.

Unbelievably, this trade could have gone a whole different way. Back in mid-2021, the Cubs were interested in pitcher Matt Allan. A player the Mets essentially built their entire 2019 draft around acquiring, they instead chose to ship out their 2020 first-round pick. On the scale of pain, this makes the trade go from bad to much worse.

A bad Mets trade looks even worse with the alternative they could have surrendered

Allan just turned 24 last month and his story has been nothing but injuries. He tossed 10.1 innings in the minors in 2019 and hadn’t logged another until this season where he has stopped off in St. Lucie. Things have gone well. Across 5 starts and 12 innings, he’s 0-1 with a 2.25 ERA. Walks are a bit high at 4.5 per 9. The strikeouts have been easy to find at 11.3 per 9.

Statistics are a minor part of Allan’s story. Staying on the field is the much bigger ask. The slew of injuries has had him going from top Mets prospect to a feel-good story we are just hoping has a conclusion at the major league level. A $2.5 million signing bonus should help him stay away from working at Whole Foods in the offseason. Just a high school kid at the time when the Mets took him with the 89th overall selection, it has been a career of rehabbing and not playing the game.

Failed trades are rarely remembered for what teams didn’t give up simply because those details are lost to time. We’ll always grade the Baez and Williams for Crow-Armstrong trade for what actually happened and not what could’ve been. It’s good news for those involved in this decision because if you add into the equation how Allan could have been a headliner instead, it’s hard to give it anything but an F grade.