It’s no secret that the New York Mets are desperate for starting pitching help — and teams around Major League Baseball will try to wring them dry because of it.
SNY’s Andy Martino reported on Tuesday that asking prices for potential starting pitcher trade targets are “very high,” which would normally make striking a deal with over a week to go until the July 31 deadline difficult enough.
But acting general manager Zack Scott has made it known over the past few weeks that he is not willing to part with the organization’s top prospects, which include four of MLB’s top 100 prospects in catcher Francisco Alvarez (No. 34), shortstop Ronny Mauricio (No. 50), pitcher Matt Allan (No. 58), and third baseman Brett Baty (No. 73). That only makes the chances of acquiring a game-changing starter before the deadline that much more difficult.
Of those four, Mauricio would be the most likely prospect to be dealt considering Francisco Lindor has the shortstop position held down for the next 10 years, but if trade prices are as high as reported, he won’t be enough.
It remains to be seen if the Mets’ stance on their prospects can change over the next week as desperation will surely rise if they can’t find a deal sooner rather than later.
The Mets’ rotation is currently being held together by glue and duct tape — and it’s barely good enough for the first-place side.
Jacob deGrom was sent to the 10-day injured list on Sunday for forearm tightness — his fifth injury issue of the season — as he joined Carlos Carrasco, Noah Syndergaard, David Peterson, Jordan Yamamoto, and Joey Lucchesi on the shelf.
Carrasco, who was acquired in the Lindor deal from the Cleveland Indians, is nearing his Mets debut after tearing his hamstring late in spring training while Syndergaard’s comeback from Tommy John surgery was pushed back three months from June to September after his rehab stint in the minors hit a snag.
