NY Mets: Best trade destination for each of the bats on the trade market

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A day will come when J.D. Davis, Jeff McNeil, and Dominic Smith are no longer all lumped together. Right now, the three New York Mets position players are the trio most likely to get dealt before Opening Day 2022—whenever that is.

Davis and Smith saw their playing time diminish down the stretch in 2021. McNeil moved from second base to left field and has since become a guy the Mets are rumored to have an interest in heavily shopping around to the other 29 teams.

The MLB lockout has put a hold on any trade from actually happening. When the lockout does end, we can expect talks to resume. And these three members of the Mets’ trade block do have some teams where they may fit right in.

NY Mets trade candidate J.D. Davis is a fit for the Cincinnati Reds

J.D. Davis for Luis Castillo—who says no?

It’s the Cincinnati Reds for sure. But maybe with a few other pieces, a deal can work.

There is no truly perfect team for Davis out there because of his deficiencies on defense. I view him as more of a part-time position player, part-time DH. And if that job does come to the National League for good, the Reds may be a team that could use him.

If Nick Castellanos isn’t returning to Cincinnati, the Reds are missing out on a huge piece of their offense from last year. He’s actually similar to Davis in a lot of ways. He, too, has moved around the field in an attempt to find him a more permanent place on defense. His bat, however, has been much more alive and far more often than Davis’ ever has.

The Mets and Reds are natural trade partners because of the latter’s possible available starting pitchers to deal. While Davis might not be intriguing enough for them to sell Castillo, maybe Sonny Gray or Tyler Mahle makes a little more sense.

The Reds have a potent offense but the loss of Castellanos looms. Mike Moustakas is penciled in as their DH for 2022 according to FanGraphs. However, with Davis as an alternative and another choice to play some left field, maybe this could be the start of a trade between these two clubs.

New York Mets v Los Angeles Dodgers / Ronald Martinez/GettyImages

NY Mets trade candidate Jeff McNeil is a fit for the Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox are a team on the rise and one thing they have room for is an upgrade at second base. They didn’t get much out of Cesar Hernandez there last year. With Leury Garcia first on the depth chart for the position in 2022, they need to think about a guy like McNeil as a solution.

The White Sox already have a right-handed-heavy starting lineup with a few switch hitters among them to break it up. McNeil could give them a strictly left-handed-hitting bat to insert in the lineup either at the top or in the latter part of the starting nine. Also capable of playing other positions aside from second base, McNeil brings with him many talents that should intrigue a team like the White Sox.

The problem I always run into when thinking about a trade between the Mets and White Sox is exactly what the Southsiders have to offer. Another team with a steady starting rotation last year, the only guy we could conceivably think they would trade is Dallas Keuchel. He wasn’t very good at all last season. This could end up becoming yet another veteran addition to the Mets that doesn’t work out.

It has also been proposed by some, including former Mets general manager Jim Bowden, that the team should pursue Craig Kimbrel. Once the best closer in baseball, he also comes with warning signs. Nevertheless, the White Sox, maybe more than any other championship contender, could benefit a lot from having McNeil on their team.

Miami Marlins v New York Mets - Game One / Jim McIsaac/GettyImages

NY Mets trade candidate Dominic Smith is a fit for the Milwaukee Brewers

Do you feel a theme here? The Reds and White Sox both excelled on the mound in 2021. The same thing happened with the Milwaukee Brewers. And while the Reds and White Sox had offense to help them out, this wasn’t always the case with Milwaukee. They had a rough season at the plate. One reason was a lack of production from their first basemen.

The Brewers have been in search for a first baseman for quite some time. The depth chart has Rowdy Tellez as the expected starter in 2022. Similar to Smith with his up and down career, he’s a worse defender and a guy who hasn’t played the field anywhere other than first base. At least Smith has learned left field and could provide the Brewers with some emergency innings at the position if they chose to. Smith may not end up being a long-term answer for the Brewers at the position. But if they’re going to give Tellez a shot, why not Smith?

What’s more, Tyrone Taylor is the guy slated to be their DH in 2022. They need to do something.

The Brewers have a lot of starting pitching depth. Among them, only Adrian Houser and Eric Lauer would possibly be available. Both under 30 and coming off of impressive seasons, I’d be curious to see what it would take to grab either of them.

A far bigger target for the Mets could be to try and swing a deal for Hader. Smith would hardly matter in a deal for him. It’s still worth a phone call to get a conversation started.

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