The New York Mets’ bats are starting to come around as the team gets healthier and the returning players get into a rhythm. Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman and Taijuan Walker are doing an admirable job in the rotation, and Tylor Megill has been impressing as well. But the unit is short at least one or two names, and that’s why the organization is monitoring the trade market.
However, the Mets also know that, depending on their respective recoveries, Noah Syndergaard and Carlos Carrasco can provide a boost to the rotation and give it some depth and length, something that it desperately needs after Joey Lucchesi was lost for the year and David Peterson will be out for a while.
Mets’ acting general manager Zack Scott is scanning the league and waiting for teams to call their shots and identify themselves as buyers or sellers. The trade deadline is on July 30, so there are still three weeks of rumors and rumblings.
The first-place Mets are on the lookout for talent
The Mets are first in their division and will likely be trying to acquire talent, namely starting pitching.
“Our goal is to win the division, so there’s a lot of focus on that,†Scott said to Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News on Monday at Citi Field. “I think we’ve had kind of an uneven season; part of it is performance but part of it is just the number of injuries that we’ve had and the adversity that we’ve faced.
“If we look at ourselves in the whole picture of the National League, the goal is to win your division, get to the postseason and, given especially the top of the rotation and our bullpen, I think we’ve got as good a chance as anyone once we get there.â€
Carrasco is expected to join the Mets in late July or early August, while Syndergaard’s target date is September 1. Relying on them to save the rotation without bringing any alternatives in July may be risky.
“If we get those guys back, it’s a bonus,†Scott said of Carrasco and Syndergaard. “And if we have more guys, then we’ll figure it out. … The reality is the game is designed to limit the impact of a single player, whether that’s a starting pitcher or hitter. So we have to be smart.â€
Both Carrasco and Syndergaard have performed at an ace-like level recently, and could take the Mets’ rotation to the next level if they are both healthy.