3 Mets trade deadline targets failing with their new teams

At the trade deadline, the New York Mets had a couple of holes to fill. The number one priority was fixing the DH issues that had plagued them all season. They attempted to do that by acquiring Daniel Vogelbach and Darin Ruf. Vogelbach has been good, Ruf has not.

The Mets needed to address the bullpen as well. They did acquire Mychal Givens, who after a rough start has been really good, but they could've done more. This team has needed a lefty all season and Billy Eppler just didn't get it done.

Another area of concern for the Mets all season has been the catcher spot. James McCann and Tomas Nido, while really good defensively, had given the Mets next to nothing offensively until recently. They did nothing to address that position.

While there was a lot of disappointment within the Mets fanbase once the deadline passed, some of the players the Mets were targeting haven't performed up to par with their new teams.

1) Mets trade deadline target failing with his new team: Christian Vazquez

Willson Contreras was the candidate the Mets were fixated on the most to be their new catcher. The three-time all-star was looked at as a lock to get moved because the Cubs found themselves far back of a playoff spot but to everyone's surprise, the Cubs decided to hold onto the 30 year old.

With Contreras off the table, the only other catcher the Mets showed much interest in was Christian Vazquez. The former Red Sox backstop was having a career year with the bat, slashing .282/.327/.432 with eight home runs and 42 RBI.

Vazquez was known as a defensive minded catcher who got to play a lot because of his prowess behind the plate. The offense was a nice surprise, after just a 77 OPS+ season in 138 games last season.

The Astros traded for Vazquez at the deadline, shipping their 28th and 29th ranked prospects according to MLB.com to Boston.

The package seemed pretty light even with Vazquez's expiring contract. I felt the season he was having was worth more than that.

Since arriving to Houston, Vazquez has not been the same player. He's played in just 25 games, splitting time with fellow catcher Martin Maldonado. Vazquez has just one extra base hit, a double, in 81 plate appearances as an Astro. His .544 OPS as an Astro is lower than Tomas Nido's season OPS (.605) and barely better than McCann's season OPS (.535).

Maldonado has just a .593 season OPS yet Vazquez isn't playing more regularly. The Mets seemed to have dodged a bullet here.

2) Mets trade deadline target failing with his new team: Josh Bell

Josh Bell was my number one trade deadline target for the Mets. I felt he was the perfect DH. He's a switch hitter who was hitting well from both sides of the plate in Washington. He has tremendous power and had been hitting for a high average this season. I felt he would provide outstanding protection for Pete Alonso, something the Mets are still searching for consistently.

Bell was included in the Juan Soto mega deal with the Padres. He was expected to hit in the middle of their order and be the all-star bat he was for the Nationals this season.

This has not happened for the often streaky Bell. As a Padre he's slashed .203/.313/.301 with just three home runs and 11 RBI. For reference, Tyler Naquin has four home runs as a Met in 70 fewer plate appearances.

The Padres have gone just 21-20 since making that blockbuster trade and find themselves barely hanging onto a playoff spot.

Having Bell (and Soto) produce the way they're supposed to would definitely help them out down the stretch.

Even while Ruf hasn't been good as a Met, Vogelbach alone has done more for the Mets than Bell has done for San Diego on a much cheaper price tag with another year of control.