{"id":753890,"date":"2026-07-17T04:30:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T04:30:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/753890\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T04:30:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T04:30:13","slug":"mets-to-begin-fielding-offers-for-deadline-sell-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/753890\/","title":{"rendered":"Mets To Begin Fielding Offers For Deadline Sell-Off"},"content":{"rendered":"

The deadline sale in Queens appears to be underway. Chelsea Janes of SNY<\/a> and Jon Heyman of The New York Post<\/a> each report that the 41-57 Mets are informing other teams they\u2019re willing to begin trade conversations on the majority of the roster.<\/p>\n

Both reports suggest the Mets aren\u2019t interested in moving\u00a0Juan Soto<\/a> or any of their four core young players:\u00a0Nolan McLean<\/a>,\u00a0Christian Scott<\/a>,\u00a0Carson Benge<\/a> and\u00a0A.J. Ewing<\/a>. Everyone else appears to be available, though the Mets obviously aren\u2019t going to line up trades for 80% of their roster. Let\u2019s run through some of the possibilities.<\/p>\n

Big-Name Infielders On Huge Contracts<\/p>\n

Francisco Lindor<\/a> is signed for $32MM per season through 2031. He finished in the top 10 in MVP balloting each season from 2022-25. He\u2019s not going to come close to that this year, as he\u2019s hitting just .210\/.291\/.363 across 175 plate appearances. The five-time All-Star has had some unexpected defensive lapses and missed two months with a left calf strain.<\/p>\n

The contract, lack of production and Lindor\u2019s age (33 in November) all make him unlikely to move, as owner Steve Cohen acknowledged<\/a> a few weeks ago in an appearance on The New York Post\u2019s podcast. Lindor also has full no-trade protection as a player with 10-and-5 rights (10 years of service time, the last five of which have come with one team).<\/p>\n

Bo Bichette<\/a> doesn\u2019t have the long-term commitment but is signed for $42MM annually for the 2027-28 seasons. He can opt out after this season or next. Most of Bichette\u2019s 2026 commitments were paid out in the form of a $40MM signing bonus, so he\u2019s only playing on a $2MM salary this year. It\u2019s the future money and opt-out provisions that would prevent another team from taking on that commitment.<\/p>\n

[Related: Mets Trade Deadline Outlook<\/a>]<\/p>\n

New York could contemplate some kind of conditional cash considerations for future seasons if Bichette doesn\u2019t opt out. The two-time All-Star has an underwhelming .253\/.297\/.372 batting line through 417 plate appearances. Bichette has gotten going since the beginning of June. A trade would be complicated by the need to pay down a big portion of the contract for what\u2019d be a middling prospect return, especially if the Mets view a hopefully resurgent Bichette as a key piece of the 2027 roster.<\/p>\n

Shorter-Term Trade Chips<\/p>\n

While a Lindor or Bichette trade would be a long shot, the Mets have a few other players they easily could \u2014 and probably will \u2014 move. Freddy Peralta<\/a>,\u00a0Clay Holmes<\/a>,\u00a0A.J. Minter<\/a> and\u00a0Brooks Raley<\/a> headline their group of impending free agents. (Holmes has a $12MM player option that he\u2019s likely to decline.) Luke Weaver<\/a> is playing on an $8MM salary and signed for next year at $11MM.<\/p>\n

Peralta is one of the most obvious trade chips in the game. Extension talks this spring didn\u2019t get far<\/a>, seemingly due to a holdup on contract length. Peralta is having his worst season since his 2021 breakout, allowing a 4.66 ERA with a career-low 22.3% strikeout rate.<\/p>\n

Those are fourth starter numbers, but he\u2019ll still be a prime trade candidate one year removed from a top five finish in Cy Young voting. Peralta\u2019s $8MM salary remains a bargain, and he\u2019d be a lock to decline a qualifying offer if the Mets hold him all season. They\u2019d only receive a compensatory pick after the fourth round if he signs elsewhere; they\u2019ll do better than that in a trade within the next three weeks.<\/p>\n

Holmes\u2019 situation is more complicated, as he\u2019s unlikely to pitch before the deadline as he rehabs a May fibula fracture. The 33-year-old righty had pitched well over his first nine starts. He\u2019s a more realistic candidate to accept an approximate $23MM qualifying offer for next season if the Mets proposed it. Holmes says he\u2019s open to an extension<\/a> instead of a trade, and Janes writes that the sides are indeed expected to have those conversations before the August 3 deadline. Holmes\u2019 trade value isn\u2019t going to change over the next few weeks, so they could take the extension talks right up to the deadline before deciding on a course of action.<\/p>\n

Minter and Raley are solid rental lefty relievers. The Mets will probably need to eat a portion of Minter\u2019s $11MM salary. He has a 1.42 ERA with 17 strikeouts and only one walk in 19 innings since returning from last year\u2019s lat surgery. Minter\u2019s average fastball speed has dipped to a career-low 92.9 mph and he\u2019s not missing quite as many bats as he did during his best seasons with the Braves. He has plenty of high-leverage experience and is still getting excellent results, though.<\/p>\n

Raley is a soft tosser who excels at avoiding hard contact. He\u2019s playing on an affordable $4.75MM contract and owns a 2.02 ERA through 35 2\/3 innings. He has fanned a quarter of opponents against a 9.3% walk rate. Even if it\u2019s not the flashiest profile, he\u2019s a clear fit for a contending bullpen and a virtual lock to be moved.<\/p>\n

Weaver is the best of New York\u2019s bullpen trade chips. The 32-year-old righty has been their top free agent signing from last winter. Weaver hadn\u2019t allowed an earned run since the end of April until giving up a Trea Turner<\/a> solo home run tonight. He has fired 40 frames of 2.03 ERA ball while striking out 28% of opponents against a 7.1% walk percentage. He\u2019s getting swinging strikes at a 15% rate and while the Mets have used him in a setup role, he had a bit of closing experience with the Yankees. The extra year under contract gives the Mets a little more leverage, but they\u2019re likely to cash him in at the deadline when trade prices for relievers are highest.<\/p>\n

Controllable Trade Candidates<\/p>\n

Among this group, it\u2019s most notable that the Mets apparently aren\u2019t completely shutting the door on catcher\u00a0Francisco Alvarez<\/a>. He popped two home runs tonight and is up to a .259\/.325\/.448 line on the season. Alvarez is a clear step below the game\u2019s best catchers, but he\u2019s a well above-average hitter for the position with legitimate plus power. There are more questions defensively, as he\u2019s prone to passed balls and not great at controlling the running game. He did grade very highly as a pitch framer early in his career but has tailed off in that regard over the last two seasons.<\/p>\n

The Mets control the 24-year-old backstop for three seasons beyond this one. It\u2019d be a surprise if they moved him, though it seems they\u2019re at least open to the possibility of another team blowing them away. Alvarez has been nicked up a couple times over the last two seasons, missing time with hand injuries last year and meniscus surgery in his right knee this season.<\/p>\n

New York could probably get a bigger haul for Alvarez than for any of their other plausible trade candidates. It\u2019d leave them without a clear answer behind the plate in 2027. They don\u2019t have any top catching prospects waiting in the wings. The Mets extended backup catcher Luis Torrens<\/a> in May, but he\u2019s a defensive specialist who fits best as a complementary player. If they did trade Alvarez, they\u2019d probably need to make a free agent run at\u00a0Ryan Jeffers<\/a>,\u00a0Tyler Stephenson<\/a> or\u00a0Carson Kelly<\/a> in the offseason.<\/p>\n

Huascar Brazob\u00e1n<\/a> is an under-the-radar bullpen chip. He\u2019s cheaply controllable for three more seasons, but the late bloomer is approaching his 37th birthday. That\u2019s not the kind of player a selling team is going to take off the market. Brazob\u00e1n has a 2.70 ERA with a league average strikeout rate and 54% grounder percentage across 46 2\/3 innings. His below-average command might keep him in middle relief for a contender. The affordability and an excellent sinker-changeup combination should draw attention from other clubs.<\/p>\n

Brett Baty<\/a>,\u00a0Ronny Mauricio<\/a> and\u00a0Mark Vientos<\/a> have found themselves in rumors for years. They\u2019re all having rough 2026 campaigns. Baty was an above-average regular last season and seems the most desirable of the trio as a change of scenery candidate. Anthony DiComo of MLB.com<\/a> writes that the Mets are expected to receive interest in Baty, albeit more as a buy-low type.<\/p>\n

Vientos popped 27 homers two seasons ago but hasn\u2019t hit since then and has no defensive value. He\u2019s also out of options. Mauricio will be out of options next year. He\u2019s a former top prospect with big tools but an extremely aggressive approach which big league pitchers have exploited in his scattered looks. He\u2019s a .226\/.278\/.345 hitter in 104 career games and currently in Triple-A. Mauricio and Vientos might both be fighting to hold spots on a 40-man roster by next spring. They\u2019ll have modest value at best.<\/p>\n

Underwater Contracts<\/p>\n

It\u2019s no surprise the Mets would be willing to discuss players like\u00a0Jorge Polanco<\/a>,\u00a0Sean Manaea<\/a>,\u00a0Luis Robert Jr.<\/a>,\u00a0Kodai Senga<\/a>,\u00a0Devin Williams<\/a> and\u00a0Marcus Semien<\/a> \u2014 all of whom are on unappealing contracts. The Mets could find a taker for Williams if they paid some of his $51MM deal down, though that might not be worth it considering they\u2019re already going to need to replace a lot of the aforementioned relievers.<\/p>\n

Robert, currently rehabbing from a back injury, could net a lottery ticket type prospect if the Mets eat the remainder of his $20MM salary. Manaea has been alright as a starter, but the Mets would again need to cover most of his $25MM salaries for this year and next. Polanco, Senga and Semien seem pretty close to immovable given their respective contracts and performances\/injuries this year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The deadline sale in Queens appears to be underway. Chelsea Janes of SNY and Jon Heyman of The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":753891,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2290],"tags":[3883,634,5,88,358,26,5805,10607,1712,1347,227,753,2070,134,107,228,2517,4804],"class_list":["post-753890","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-baseball","tag-a-j-ewing","tag-a-j-minter","tag-baseball","tag-bo-bichette","tag-brett-baty","tag-brooks-raley","tag-carson-benge","tag-christian-scott","tag-clay-holmes","tag-francisco-alvarez","tag-francisco-lindor","tag-freddy-peralta","tag-huascar-brazoban","tag-juan-soto","tag-luke-weaver","tag-mark-vientos","tag-nolan-mclean","tag-ronny-mauricio"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116933441846119342","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/753890","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=753890"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/753890\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/753891"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=753890"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=753890"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=753890"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}