One Player The Mets Should Target At The Trade Deadline

It looked like the New York Mets would be sellers at the trade deadline, but as July 30 approaches, the team may be looking to add a few pieces to make a playoff push.

Trade Deadline

At the beginning of the season, it appeared the Mets were on their way to another disappointing year. A month ago, the club was 24-34, 10 games under .500, with no hope of playing October baseball. However, the team has turned things around, winning 16 of their last 21 games to push their record to 40-40, and are now just one game back of a wildcard spot.

What could be the reason for such a turnaround? Could it be because Grimace threw out the first pitch weeks ago?

Could it be because Jose Iglesias’ song “OMG” has hit number one on iTunes?

Who knows the real reasons, but all that matters is the team putting up wins, staying in the hunt, and having fun doing so.

With all this being said, what do the Mets need before the trade deadline to put them over the edge?

The Bullpen Needs A Boost

Saturday night was a great example of why the Mets must add another arm to their bullpen. They were up 6-4 on the Houston Astros with six outs away from extending their win streak to five games before the bullpen surrendered five runs in the last two innings.

The Mets went through four relief pitchers during the Astros comeback. Ty Adcock went 1.2 innings, giving up one hit. Jake Diekman pitched 0.2 innings, which allowed two earned runs and two walks. Reed Garrett picked up the loss, allowing one earned run and two walks without recording an out. Danny Young closed the game with two earned runs through 1.2 innings pitched.

Games like this may be acceptable in June, but if you are looking to make a run in October, these kinds of outings will be costly.

If we look at the grand picture rather than one game, it also doesn’t help when your closer, Edwin Diaz , has been struggling all season and is currently serving a 10-game suspension for using a foreign substance. Not having a guy like him, who you expected to rely on for four days a week, makes it challenging to close out games.

Kirby Yates

Kirby Yates

The defending champion Texas Rangers have struggled as the season's halfway mark arrives. They are 37-46 and eight games back of a wildcard spot. As the trade deadline looms, they will most likely be looking to trade a few assets, one of which may be Kirby Yates .

Yates is a 37-year-old right-hand relief pitcher who has been dealing this year. In 28.1 innings pitched, Yates has a .95 ERA, .95 WHIP, 38 strikeouts, 12 walks, and a 3-1 record. He has been perfect as a closer, saving all 11 attempts. This would be perfect, considering Diaz is unavailable and has been shaky all season.

If the Mets land Yates, I would expect him to take over the closing role and Diaz to be the setup man. This way, the pressure on Diaz can be lessened if he pitches the 7th/8th inning rather than the 9th.

The return for Yates should not break the bank for the Mets. He is on a one-year contract worth 4.5 million and is up there in age, so it should be a cheap rental. It mainly depends on the position the Mets are in come July 30. If they find themselves in a wildcard spot, they should jump on this opportunity, but if they fall back, they may feel it is unnecessary.

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