4 Mets prospects to take off the table in a potential Shohei Ohtani trade

Where do the New York Mets draw the line when it comes to renting Shohei Ohtani? Mixed reports of the Los Angeles Angels being willing to trade him this summer if the club falls out of the race have already created an early stir as to where he’ll end up. We can expect Mets rumors involving an Ohtani trade and even more once he gets to free agency.

Many Mets fans will already say it’s not worth trading for Ohtani just to rent him for a few months. Understandable as that is, the Mets shouldn’t throw away a chance at a 2023 championship if he’s the missing piece. Even if all he did was become the club’s new DH and never stepped on the mound, Ohtani could give the Mets a massive boost of power.

When it comes to assembling a trade package for Ohtani, there are certain prospects who should remain off-limits. For the Mets, these four are non-starters.

1) NY Mets prospect Francisco Alvarez is off-limits in a Shohei Ohtani trade

Fortunately, the Angels do have Logan O’Hoppe. He’s their young catching prospect acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies last year. They don’t have any real need to go after another catcher in a trade. Alvarez could always become a DH for them. After all, the second Ohtani is gone, a spot opens up.

It’s hard to fathom any reasonable trade package that would make sense for the Mets at this point to give up on Alvarez. Last summer when Juan Soto was on the block it might not have been as outrageous. You’d get Soto for a couple more seasons. With the benefit of hindsight and seeing how poorly Soto has performed with the San Diego Padres, Mets fans and the front office may have some doubts about ever giving up all that much for even a superstar.

Exactly what the Mets have planned for Alvarez is a little unknown. They have catching prospect Kevin Parada as somewhat of a safety net if his defense doesn’t meet their needs. Alvarez could always become more of a DH anyway with the occasional start behind the plate. We’ll have to see.

In the meantime, the Mets seem likely to hold onto Alvarez. Trading him for a few months of Ohtani would go against their modus operandi.