If the Mets continue to slump, they can take a page from the 2016 Yankees

The New York Mets don't look like a competitive team on the field. After putting together a roster considered among the favorites, the team has failed in different areas of the game, highlighting that reaching the postseason may not work out this year.

After winning 101 games in 2022 and being one of the best offenses in baseball, the team is ranked in the worst places in the different offensive and pitching categories. If this continues, the Mets should seriously consider copying what their neighbors did in 2016.

The Mets are in a similar position to the 2016 Yankees and should follow the same course

It's hard to give up, especially when the hype this year surrounding a possible World Series in Queens was enormous, but the reality is that the Mets don't have a consistent team to compete for a championship. Their veteran pitchers are out of their usual shape, their bullpen has many missing pieces, and the lineup is incapable of producing.

Despite playing with a positive record, the New York Yankees decided to become sellers at the 2016 trade deadline. This unusual path of a consistently competitive team caused favorable multiplicative effects for the organization, that just the year after these moves, were left behind one game from his berth to the world series.

The Yankees traded five players this deadline, receiving thirteen in return, but three specific trades had the biggest impact. The effects of those trades turned the Yankees into a winning team quickly.

The Bronx team traded veteran Carlos Beltran to the Texas Rangers in a headlining package for Dillon Tate, who was the piece that later, in 2018, allowed them to acquire Zack Britton. Additionally, they traded Andrew Miller to the former Cleveland Indians for top prospects Clint Frazier and Justus Sheffield. Although Frazier did not turn out to be the expected player, the return was high for a rental player, and Sheffield allowed the team to get James Paxton.

But if one trade turned out to be majestic, it was the one they pulled off by sending Aroldis Chapman to the Chicago Cubs for top prospect Gleyber Torres. Not only did they manage to land Torres, but in the following offseason, the team signed Chapman to a multi-year deal.

The Mets can follow the same course. David Robertson can bring a big-name, heavyweight prospect to the team, given his great performance and the value of relievers on the market. Likewise, players like Eduardo Escobar, Tommy Pham, and even Carlos Carrasco may have an intermediate value in the market that allows you to get type B prospects.

The Mets can quickly activate this trade deadline as sellers without the need to rebuild and be ready to compete again in 2024. While they can promote acquiring prospects that, with good player development, they can contribute soon.