3 trade deadline moves that prove Billy Eppler knows what he's doing

3) The Mets not trading for Josh Hader proved to be smart. 

The Mets desperately needed a left-handed reliever to shore up their bullpen for the playoffs as they entered the final two months of the season. 

However, one thing that was a silver lining was that Billy Eppler didn’t trade for Milwaukee Brewers All-Star closer Josh Hader. Hader had a career-high 4.24 ERA with the Brewers at the time he was traded to the San Diego Padres on August 1. 

But Hader has been a disaster so far in San Diego. He has thrown just 3.1 innings, giving up six earned runs and five walks. Hader lost his full-time closer role after just less than three weeks with the Padres following an outing where he gave up three runs without recording an out on Friday against the lowly Washington Nationals, the team with the worst record in baseball. 

The Padres gave up All-Star closer Taylor Rogers, Dinelson Lamet, Esteury Ruiz, and Robert Gasser to land him. The Mets probably would not have been able to afford Hader with the farm system they have, so it has turned out to be a smart and wise decision by Billy Eppler not to mortgage the future for a closer when they already have the game’s best reliever in Edwin Diaz.  

But did the Mets find their lefty reliever yesterday, without having to give up any prospects to do it? In Nate Fisher, a guy who worked in the financial services industry as recently as June 2021? You have to love sports.