9 under the radar trade targets the Mets should pursue

The Mets are in need of some starting pitching, and Spencer Turnbull is an interesting option.

Turnbull was having a breakout season before he suffered a forearm injury in early June and underwent Tommy John surgery in late July. He made nine starts and pitched 50 innings, allowing 37 hits, 16 earned runs, 12 walks, and striking out 44. His ERA was 2.88, his FIP was 2.95, his WHIP was .98, and his fWAR was 1.5. He dazzled on May 19th when he no-hit the Mariners.

The righty throws six pitches, which is a rarity. He uses his 4-seam fastball the most, about 36% of the time. Next up is his mid-80’s slider about 25% of the time. Then he uses his sinker about 22% of the time. His changeup and curveball were only thrown about eight percent of the time. He started throwing a cutter this year, but didn’t use it very much (3%). His fastballs all sit in the low-to-mid 90’s. 

Turnbull is a ground ball specialist, inducing grounders on 57% of batted balls. He also gets batters to pull the ball a lot (45%) and he only gives up hard hit balls about 21% of the time.

Turnbull has three years of control remaining. If he doesn’t suffer any setbacks, he has a chance to come back in late 2022. Even if he does have a setback, he’ll be ready to go in early 2023. Given that he’s going to miss most or all of next season, Turnbull’s price may be lower than it normally would be. He might also be more expendable, given that the Tigers just signed Eduardo Rodriguez to a five-year deal.