Mets have a phone call to make with the Brewers about pitching

The other Brewers pitchers for the Mets to consider

This leaves the Mets with two options. Adrian Houser, 28, is coming off of a 10-6 season with a 3.22 ERA. About to embark on his age 29 season, he doesn’t have a long track record of success. Last season was only his second full campaign in the major leagues. As successful as he was, I’m not so sure he qualifies as a guy to heavily target.

There’s also Eric Lauer, the lone lefty in this five-some. A little younger at age 27 next year, he’s kind of like Joey Lucchesi in a lot of ways. Also traded away from the San Diego Padres, he’s a younger southpaw with some promise ahead of him for better days. The question then becomes something along the lines of: are either of these guys worth trading Davis, McNeil, or Smith?

The answer may actually be yes. It’s never easy to move on from a guy you once viewed as a starter—something we all felt at one point about those three. Realistically, other than McNeil, I can’t envision the Mets getting much in return for them. Would a team really give up a top-quality relief pitcher for Davis or Smith? Relievers are hard enough to find. Any contender with the hopes of going far would only onto those arms tightly.

It’s a little different with a starting pitcher. You can get innings from them. They’re a little easier to predict and work with. When this fails, you move them to the bullpen. When a reliever struggles, you bite your tongue and cut bait when you can.