Two reasons the NY Mets aren't in a scramble to trade a starting pitcher away

The New York Mets were definitely going to go into the 2026 season with a different rotation. They will, but maybe not with the kind of turnover we actually expected.

So far, they’ve added Freddy Peralta. That’s great. Nolan McLean comes along for the ride from the start. That’s awesome! Then there are four left. Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea hitch along with some health questions. Clay Holmes and David Peterson join the parade with durability to get through a full year as their points of doubt.

Six bodies. No one is getting sent to the minor leagues. No one is really a true consideration for the bullpen, right? We’ll get more clarity in the coming days. For now, we shouldn’t expect the Mets to scramble to make a trade for two reasons.

Why the Mets aren’t trading away a starting pitcher (at least not yet)

1) They’re preparing for an injury

Last year’s Mets team had Sean Manaea, Frankie Montas, and Paul Blackburn all go down with injuries before the season began. In 2024, they had the big blow of not having Kodai Senga around at the start of the season.

It’s a Mets tradition like no other. An important part of the rotation is going to get hurt in the spring. Whether it’s a fluke injury, a reaggravated ailment, or someone overdue to blow out an arm, there is no safer bet than the over on 0.5 Mets starting pitcher injuries to begin the year.

The Mets are well-equipped to handle the load of a full season with how many options they have. What’s unclear is whether they’d actually use a direct six-man rotation or move someone into the bullpen even if it’s temporary.

These things have an unfortunate way of working themselves out.

A look around the league at some potential trade matchups for the Mets and we see those ball clubs have already seemingly full rotations themselves. Clubs who were in on Framber Valdez, for instance, include the Baltimore Orioles and San Francisco Giants who could piece together a five-man rotation already. They’re likely, too, preparing for an injury of some kind. You’re better off having too many chicken wings for your Super Bowl party than not enough.

2) There are way too many free agent starting pitchers still out there

Some owners are cheap, but general managers aren’t typically dumb. Jon Heyman recently shared a list of available starting pitcher free agents. Not all are great, but they exist and won’t cost anything more than money.

Over 20 names with a variety of upside and contract demands, we would have to question why anyone would think about giving up players to acquire Senga from the Mets. Even Peterson, whose contract comes in at a little over $8 million, isn’t enough of a value pickup from a dollars and cents perspective.

The only kind of trade that would make sense for the Mets at the moment involving one of their starting pitchers leaving is if it’s a starter for a starter deal with the player coming back to the Mets being better and more expensive. Peterson for Nick Pivetta or Mitch Keller are two examples. Those don’t seem realistic enough at this stage of the offseason.

A late spring training trade remains in play, especially if the Mets have intentions of bumping up a player like Tobias Myers into the rotation. There will come a time, too, when players like Jonah Tong and Christian Scott push for a big league roster spot. At the moment, staying in the pocket with as many arms as you can fit feels right.