How the NY Mets can play a role in the Roki Sasaki sweepstakes with a trade

International pools for the 2025 season opened up on Wednesday, giving all teams across MLB the opportunity to sign some high-profile international prospects. But no international player is more highly touted than Japanese superstar Roki Sasaki. Although the New York Mets have been eliminated as a potential destination for the flamethrowing right-hander, they could still take advantage of the situation.

Teams are allowed to trade international money. The Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres are reportedly looking to make trades to build up their international pool. While the Mets used most of their international cash on Elian Pena, a top three international prospect per both MLB Pipeline and Baseball America, they could use any left over cash in a trade with either the Padres or Dodgers.

So, if the Mets can make a trade with the Dodgers or Padres, who are some players they could target from each team?

1) Sean Reynolds

The Mets need some bullpen reinforcements, so why target a high-ceiling relief prospect? Sean Reynolds made his MLB debut last season, pitching 11 outstanding innings. He allowed just a single earned run and struck out 21 opponents. However, he handed out five free passes in the small sample size.

Reynolds spent most of his time at Triple-A, where he had a 6.17 ERA and 1.69 WHIP, albeit a 4.32 FIP. He still struck out his fair share of batters with a 26.7% K% and only allowed home runs at a 0.67-per-9 rate. Walks gave Reynolds some trouble, however, with a 13.1% BB%. Although Reynolds struggled overall, keep in mind that this was in the extremely hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. The league average OPS was higher than that of the peak Steroid Era.

One thing that is for sure, however, is Reynolds' stuff. The right-hander averaged out around 97 MPH with 11.5 inches of drop and 9.3 inches of horizontal break. During his brief time in the Major Leagues last season, his upper-80s slider induced a whiff rate of 45.4%. Reynolds will also occasionally mix in a change-up or sweeper, depending on the handedness of the batter. Stuff+ pinned Reynolds at an impressive 129.

There's no question that Reynolds has the stuff to be a high-leverage reliever. But his command over said stuff is lacking. Depending on the amount of international money the Mets have left, this could be a very low-risk/high-reward sort of trade. The Mets add a young reliever with a ton of potential to their depth chart, while the Padres get more money toward potentially signing Sasaki.