3 trades to upgrade J.D. Davis' spot on the roster

J.D. Davis hasn’t been the same hitter this year that he was expected to be. Sure, he hits the ball hard. What good is that? It’s like me typing with all capital letters. The New York Mets need much more out of his roster spot. The trade deadline is the time to address it. Fortunately, there have been plenty of Mets rumors about the team searching for an answer.

Defining Davis’ role with the Mets this season isn’t exactly defined. He’s a sometimes corner infielder, mostly DH. He was meant to be their main right-handed bat for regular DH duties. Given this description, let’s limit the trade target replacements to only right-handed hitters with some flexibility on defense. The team will hope Daniel Vogelbach is already the answer to replacing Dominic Smith.

Who should it be that the Mets look to find as an answer to upgrading J.D. Davis?

1) NY Mets rumors: Ian Happ might be the best J.D. Davis replacement out there

Davis joined the Mets as a guy who could play third base and left field while also maybe being able to give them innings as a right fielder and first baseman. Versatility can be measured in a number of ways. There are players like Davis who have no natural position and can get shoved in anywhere. Then there are guys like Ian Happ of the Chicago Cubs.

Happ is certainly no Gold Glove winner but he is far more flexible on defense than Davis ever was. Happ has gotten comfortable as the starting left fielder for the Cubs this year. However, in the past, the Cubs have utilized him all over the place. He has even played center field and wouldn’t be such a terrible second or third option at—well—second or third base.

The Mets, like most teams, do value players capable of playing multiple spots. This is what has made Jeff McNeil so valuable. It’s also probably a reason why they went out and added Eduardo Escobar over the winter. Even their outfielders can play all over with Mark Canha having some first base experience.

Happ and Davis might not appear to have much in common but offensively we could say the Mets could have expected from Davis what Happ has given the Cubs this year. Capable of hitting for more power than he has displayed this season, he’d be a huge roster upgrade for New York. He's also a switch-hitter so there's less of an excuse to ever sit him.