Starling Marte, one of the first speculated recruiters who started selling the New York Mets to Juan Soto during All-Star weekend in 2022, might not even get to play with him.
The Mets are open to trading the veteran right fielder, who is currently slated to be the team’s DH, after signing Soto to a historic 15-year, $765 million deal on Sunday, which was made official on Wednesday night.
A right-fielder, Soto will man the position for the foreseeable future, while the Mets are expected to roll with a platoon of Jose Siri and Tyrone Taylor in center field with Brandon Nimmo in left field.
Marte is entering the last year of his contract, which is due to pay him just north of $20 million — a deal the Mets more likely than not would have to eat money on to facilitate a deal.
The 36-year-old has been injury-plagued since the latter portions of the 2022 season, playing just 86 games in 2023 and 94 this season. Making him an exclusive DH would allow New York to preserve him a bit better, but a .715 OPS with seven home runs and 40 RBI would obviously leave plenty to be desired from that position in the lineup.
Dealing him for some bullpen help would help fill an obvious need. Depth has been a significant issue that president of baseball operations David Stearns has battled since his arrival last year, and the only relievers they have brought in were on smaller, minor-league deals.
As it stands, Edwin Diaz, Reed Garrett, Dedniel Nunez, Sean Reid-Foley, and Danny Young are the only natural relievers with experience with the team. Jose Butto and Tylor Megill have transitioned from rotation to bullpen as multi-inning options.
