The New York Mets currently sit in the final wild-card spot, and president of baseball operations David Stearns has gone to work to upgrade a roster that seemed destined to go nowhere in May.
Already, Stearns has upgraded the bullpen by trading for Matt Gage and Phil Maton while claiming Alex Young off waivers. Added some depth to the catching position by signing Logan Porter.
Still, more work needs to be done if the Mets hope to be playing deep into October, and a potential move could be making a claim for a veteran left-handed starter.
The Mets could pursue James Paxton
In a somewhat surprising move, the Los Angeles Dodgers designated veteran left-handed starter James Paxton after the 35-year-old allowed just three runs across five innings with seven strikeouts on Sunday.
Paxton, who signed a one-year deal worth seven million dollars last offseason with the Dodgers, has been extremely serviceable. The Canadian native has pitched 89.1 innings across 18 starts to a 4.43 ERA with a 1.455 WHIP and 64 strikeouts. However, walks have been an issue for the left-hander, as his 48 lead the National League.
- Mets gain important ground in Wild Card race without even taking the field
- Mets ace is focused on leading a powerful playoff surge: ‘We have to win every game’
- Mets star pitcher could potentially return in convenient role
Why Paxton would make sense
While the Mets have plenty of starting pitching depth at the moment, with players like José Buttó struggling to find consistent starts, when you get to October, you can never have too much starting pitching, especially a solid one like Paxton.
The Canadian native has also had success with the New York Yankees in the past, so he has proven he can succeed in the often tricky New York market.
In addition, the blue and orange desperately need a left-handed relief pitcher and could experiment with using the 35-year-old out of the bullpen as either a lefty specialist or as an innings eater.
With Paxton costing nothing to acquire other than taking on his contract, the Mets should take a long look at pursuing the veteran starter.
