Reese Kaplan -- How Mets Could Shake Things Up Dramatically

For a moment let’s play pretend GM (which is understandable since the Mets still don’t have  one) and try to figure out a blockbuster trade to shake away the 2026 debacle and bring some order into the future direction of the ballclub.

Obviously there are a few non-trade stalwarts on the Mets roster. This grouping is different from the bad contracts that are untradeabe (like Marcus Semien) and the younger players who have never quite reached starting performance consistently. Instead let’s consider some of the “Oh no, you can’t mean HIM!” types of players.

The first one to come to mind is shortstop Francisco Lindor.  If you flash back to what it cost to get him — pitcher Josh Wolf, outfielder Isaiah Greene, infielder Amed Rosario and infielder Andres Gimenez — it does not seem like a steep price.  

Wolf never made the majors  and owns a career ERA of 5.13 in the minors.  Greene has a career .258 batting average and shows good speed but not much else.  Rosario is the odd man here in that people felt he was destined to be a star, but despite a career MLB average of .271 he hasn’t had a starting role since back in 2023. Gimenez was thought to be a good glove/no hit kind of player but he surprised us all.  In 2023 and 2024 he showed modest power and good speed with a .250+ batting average as a starter.  He then moved onto Toronto where his playing time has fallen off as has his performance metrics.

There’s no way to spin this deal for the post season fighting Guardians.  They were fleeced.

For the Mets Lindor has provided a combination of contact hitting, power, baserunning and strong defense.  Yes, he has missed time with injuries, but when you have a player threatening to eclipse 30/30 status most years it becomes understandable why the teamed forked out $341 million to extend him as a Met for ten years.  

Of all the position players on the Mets this side of Juan Soto, Lindor has the sexiest trade profile.  Yes, his salary is high but he is that much talked about and seldom seen five tool player who is under contract through the 2031 season and the five remaining years are a stiff gut punch to an acquiring team’s finance department, it’s literally how much the Mets have already spent given he’s halfway through his deal.  By the time that contract ends he should have 450 or more home runs as a shortstop.  That’s pretty rare territory indeed.

Think for a minute about other blockbuster deals the Mets have made in the past with prime time talents leaving their clubhouse.  Some hurt immensely like Tom Seaver.  Others caught the club by surprise like Jeff Kent and Justin Turner.  Many felt Carlos Beltran was washed up after his contract ended but the man has a plaque in Cooperstown.  

So what would be a fair return for Lindor?  Obviously the Mets could use some starting pitching, a first baseman, potentially another catcher and reinforcements anywhere in the upper minors.  Getting three to four unknown gambles like they did during the HOF pitcher sell off in 2023 when both Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer were peddled away for almost nothing (including paying down chunks of their salary).  

Now if the club is serious about bringing in someone the caliber of Tarik Skubal to bolster the starting rotation then the money to pay him needs to come from somewhere.  The question is whether team is better off with Francisco Lindor in the lineup or Tarik Skubal in the rotation?  The balance sheet would tip in favor of Lindor but there are some infielders working their way up the system in house already.  The same can’t be said for multi Cy Young Award winning pitchers.  Would a rushed Jefferson Rojas plus Tarik Skubal net the Mets more than Francisco Lindor and a dice roll on an in-house starting pitcher?

What would it take for you to pull the trigger on a Lindor leaving town deal?