1 Mets player makes the MLB Trade Rumors list of top 50 trade candidates

MLB Trade Rumors is about to see their summer traffic increase much like it does on the highway when school gets back in session. For all of the technological advances we have made as humans, we really need to speed up this teleportation thing. As part of their summer routine, MLBTR produced a list of the top 50 trade deadline candidates. Although the New York Mets are buyers, they do have one player on the list.

Dominic Smith is ranked 20th on the list. While this doesn’t necessarily make him the 20th most likely player to get traded or the 20th best player among the 50, it’s still notable. There seems to be some growing belief that he could indeed get dealt this y ear after all.

Dominic Smith is the lone Mets representative on the MLB Trade Rumors list of top 50 trade candidates

Smith has been much better since coming back from Syracuse. Was the demotion humbling? Did the coaches down there teach him some secrets he may have forgotten about?

Smith remains an imperfect fit for the Mets because of the one position he does play well. Pete Alonso isn’t going away anytime soon. This makes Smith more than expendable. It’s even easier to trade him away because of the disappointing year he has had.

It’s not impossible to imagine the Mets packaging Smith with some minor leaguers in a deal to improve their current roster. Would any of us be surprised if, instead, the Mets traded him to a contender in exchange for a minor league piece either? Both are possibilities.

For as well as he has played since his promotion, he’s still hitting only .216 on the year and has yet to hit a home run in 132 trips to the plate. It’s kind of shocking for him to lose all of that power. Even in his first two seasons when he hit .198 then .224 there were home runs. Smith is slugging just .319 entering action on Saturday. Any team interested in trading for him would have a project to work on.

Interestingly enough, right behind Smith on the list is Noah Syndergaard. The Los Angeles Angels are not going to make the postseason. Syndergaard, who signed a one-year deal with the Halos in the offseason, might very well become one of the more-talked about starting pitcher trade candidates in the coming weeks.

Smith, on the other hand, might find himself back in Triple-A if the Mets make an addition at the trade deadline for the offense.