3 righties the Mets should shop for a lefty reliever upgrade

Another option for the Mets is to trade Drew Smith for a lefty in a similar spot

I don’t think a guy like Trevor May or Seth Lugo is on the trade block. Even though they are also free agents after this season, you have to hold onto those proven veterans. They are going to be huge for the Mets in getting the ball to Edwin Diaz.

Drew Smith, on the other hand, is a guy we’re still waiting to stay healthy for a full season. He is one of the younger relievers on the staff and a promising one, too. About to enter his first year of arbitration eligibility, he’s a low-cost pitcher embarking on his age 28 season.

Smith should yield a far better return than Castro. Before you fret, remember, we’re looking for a lefty reliever of similar value. Someone else with at least two years of control would be ideal. One of the teams looking to dump salary would be a good match. Unfortunately, many of them aren’t very good in the first place. They don’t have a lefty to even deal.

Boston Red Sox reliever recently caught my eye as a name to consider. Not much older than Smith, he a pair of 40+ inning seasons with ERAs of 3.04 and 3.40. He has also averaged 11.3 strikeouts per nine in his first 102.1 innings of work. The Red Sox are a rare team that may actually have a lefty to spare in a trade. Smith for Taylor only makes sense if Boston is looking for a young righty with upside and also willing to part with a southpaw we can use those same adjectives with.