3 Orioles players the Mets should demand in a Justin Verlander trade

3) NY Mets Justin Verlander trade target: Heston Kjerstad

Another outfielder the Mets can pursue from the Orioles system is Heston Kjerstad. The 24-year-old was selected second overall by the O's in the 2020 MLB Draft out of the University of Arkansas and after missing all of 2021, has shot up the Orioles system rather quickly.

Kjerstad went from playing in single-A last season all the way up to raking in AAA this season. And when I say raking, I mean absolutely raking.

Kjerstad is slashing .342/.419/.604 with seven home runs and 20 RBI in 39 games for Norfolk. 21 of his 51 hits have been for extra bases, and he hasn't slowed down at all in July, as he had an OPS of 1.094 this month.

If there's one thing Mets fans have wanted this team to add on offense, it's power. Kjerstad might not be the all-around type of player Cowser is projected to be, but his bat looks like it can be elite. He has power to all fields and his .318 average in the minors suggests he can get hits without them just leaving the yard.

If the Mets were to acquire him, Kjerstad would fit in nicely in left or right for the better part of a decade at least. Losing Verlander would sting, but adding a prospect or two from this list would soften the blow quite a bit.