5 players traded at this year's deadline for the Mets to target in the offseason via free agency

3) NY Mets free agent target traded at the deadline: Lucas Giolito

Teams hoping to rebuild their rotations this offseason are in luck thanks to the age of many of the available players. Julio Urias is one of the top names, but he stayed put on the Los Angeles Dodgers roster and is ineligible for this list. One guy under 30 who did get moved is Lucas Giolito. He’s in a similar class as Jack Flaherty and while slightly older has the benefit of a much healthier career.

Giolito turns 30 in the middle of next season. His time with the Chicago White Sox resulted in a 59-52 record and 4.20 ERA. It’s nothing astonishing, but there are some outliers.

In his first full MLB season back in 2018, Giolito tossed 173.1 innings but did so with a 6.13 ERA. In 2022, he threw another 161.2 frames with a 4.90 ERA. The rest of the time he spent in Chicago included ERAs below 4.00.

Giolito is a bit more hit and miss than most free agents we’d like to see the Mets target. His tenure with the Los Angeles Angels hasn’t gotten off to a brilliant beginning. It could have the Mets thinking twice about going anywhere near him.

The big fear with Giolito for many fans could be some similarities to Rick Porcello. He was a member of the 2020 Mets who came here with a reputation for staying healthy. He even had a Cy Young Award to his name. He was a complete bust and never pitched in the majors again. Giolito hasn’t endured the same kind of landslide in his career for a similar ending. Still, there are some reasons to doubt him. He’s a fit for the Mets right now, but also someone to watch closely down the stretch for the Angels.