Tuesday, July 21

Welcome back to the Mets Beat newsletter! Anthony DiComo has covered the Mets for MLB.com since 2007, including the past 17 seasons full-time on the beat.

PHILADELPHIA -- Welcome to Trade Deadline season. The Mets are open for business. 

That was the message team officials relayed to potential buyers around the league last week, according to multiple sources from rival clubs. Among the untouchables on their roster are rookies Nolan McLean, Carson Benge and A.J. Ewing, as well as superstar Juan Soto. 

Not among the untouchables is Francisco Lindor. 

That’s not to say Lindor is entering his final days with the Mets. According to people both inside and outside the organization, the concept of trading Lindor at the Deadline is largely unrealistic. He’s probably not going anywhere. But as long as Lindor is purportedly available, he should garner curiosity if not downright interest. 

In today’s newsletter, I want to break down why the idea of a Lindor trade has taken root in recent weeks, and why it’s highly unlikely to happen. 

Why would the Mets trade Lindor? 

They probably wouldn’t, as noted above. But the idea has gained some public steam at least in part because of reported discord between Lindor and Soto, as well as the idea that Lindor is reaching the end of his prime and could lose value in the future -- something that matters more if the Mets won’t be competitive in 2027. 

To address the first part first, reports of friction between the two Mets stars appear overblown. Both players recently told The Athletic that their relationship is fine, and multiple Mets insiders have corroborated that viewpoint. Whether the two got along last year isn’t relevant to the current situation. Personalities aside, both Soto and Lindor recognize that they can form a better team together. 

As for Lindor’s production, it has notably dipped on both sides of the ball. That’s at least partially due to the multiple medical issues Lindor has endured, including an elbow debridement procedure last October, a hamate operation in February and a badly-strained right calf in April. Since returning from the last of those maladies in mid-June, Lindor has been inconsistent, batting .211 with four home runs in 19 games, while committing five errors in 18 games at shortstop. But he did reach base five times Sunday in a possible turning point to his season. 

Do trades of this magnitude happen often? 

Not really, because large contracts are unwieldy to deal -- especially in the middle of a season when many teams are already at or near the top of their payroll budgets. The most notable recent examples were when the Red Sox traded Mookie Betts and David Price to the Dodgers with a combined $123 million left on their contracts in 2020, and when the Marlins dealt Giancarlo Stanton to the Yankees in 2017, with $295 million remaining on his deal. While both Boston and Miami saved significant money in those swaps, the prospect packages they received wound up being underwhelming given the perspective of time. 

After this season, Lindor will be halfway through his mega-contract, with five years and $170.5 million remaining. He holds a full no-trade clause and will turn 33 in November. It’s worth noting that the Mets under Steve Cohen have never been interested in shedding salary simply for the sake of saving money. 

How would the Mets replace Lindor? 
It would be almost impossible, which is why it makes little sense to trade him unless the Mets are interested in a full-scale rebuild, which they are not. Without Lindor, the Mets could shift Bo Bichette back to shortstop, but they’d be left barren if Bichette opts out of his contract this winter, and they’d be extremely reliant on the inconsistent Brett Baty as an everyday third baseman. 

 
The shortstops who will be available in free agency this winter are almost entirely a mix of 30-something backups. Internally, former top prospect Ronny Mauricio has never distinguished himself at the highest level, while No. 6 prospect Elian Peña is probably four years away at best. There’s not much else on the farm. 

From a wider perspective, Lindor ranks second behind Bobby Witt Jr. in WAR since 2022. He is, by definition, an irreplaceable player.  

What are they saying? 

“I don’t see them going anywhere,” Cohen said of both Lindor and Soto on the New York Post’s “The Show” podcast. “We’re lucky enough to have two high-quality players like that. With the elimination of whatever issues that were last year, I’m thrilled that they’re on the team.” 

Who was the winning pitcher in 2024 National League Wild Card Series Game 3? 

A) José Buttó 

B) Edwin Díaz

C) David Peterson

D) Jose Quintana

The Mets are slated open their 2027 season in Miami beginning March 25, the earliest Opening Day in Major League history. That series highlights the 2027 schedule released last week. 

Unlike this year, when the Mets did not face an NL East opponent during the first month of the season, the Mets will see all four of their division rivals by the end of the first full week of May. Their most challenging month of the 2027 schedule may be July, when they face the Dodgers seven times, as well as the Yankees, Red Sox and Phillies. 

Other highlights include a home Subway Series against the Yankees on Memorial Day weekend, as well as a home set against the Mariners beginning on Labor Day. The schedule concludes with a six-game homestand against the Pirates and Cubs, which ends Sept. 26. 

• Lindor aside, the Mets have plenty to sell. Among their less obvious Trade Deadline candidates are Baty and Francisco Alvarez, a pair of everyday position players under team control for multiple seasons after this one. Keep an eye on Clay Holmes, too. Rival scouts certainly are. 

• This Sunday, Carlos Beltrán will enter the National Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. More on Beltrán’s career and Hall journey here. 

• Ron Hunt, the combative second baseman who set the astonishing Modern Era record of 50 hit-by-pitches in a single season, died this week at 85. Len Hochberg has the full obituary on Hunt and his fascinating career. 

B) Díaz 

Pitching with a two-run deficit, New York’s closer recorded five outs in the seventh and eighth innings, before Pete Alonso’s three-run homer gave the Mets their first lead in the top of the ninth. Peterson subsequently recorded the save.

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