It’s the middle of July, so you know we have to talk about Mets trade rumors. Unfortunately, these are not the kinds of rumors we want to be talking about as the deadline approaches.
New York is still hoping to be a buyer prior to August 1st. To do that, though, they need to show the front office something. Barely squeaking out a win and scoring just three runs all weekend while losing two of three to the Dodgers won’t get that done. There’s still an opportunity to get rolling, but time is not on their side.
Ahead of Monday’s games, the Mets are 43-50. That has them 18.5 games behind the Atlanta Braves in the NL East. Their standing in the NL Wild Card race isn’t much better (8.5 games back). Even with an underperforming team, there are intriguing trade candidates should the Mets sell. Two players reside in the outfield, with one being more obvious than the other.
Bob Nightengale of USA Today spent one bullet point discussing the developing outfield market, mentioning Tommy Pham and Mark Canha as two attractive targets:
GMs say top outfielders available in trades are Cody Bellinger of the Cubs, Tommy Pham and Mark Canha of the Mets, Tyler O’Neill of the Cardinals and Adam Duvall of the Red Sox.
Pham being a hot commodity isn’t surprising. He’s playing on a one-year, $6 million deal and would be a perfect rental. The outfielder is slashing .271/.347/.476 with nine home runs, 34 RBI, 25 runs scored, and 10 steals. He entered 2023 as a fourth outfielder, but his performance earned him regular playing time.
Coincidentally enough, that playing time has come at Mark Canha’s expense. One might wonder how Canha is on this shortlist of outfielders. But it’s actually easy to see the appeal for a contender. After posting a .675 OPS in March/April, he’s produced a .780 OPS in 162 plate appearances since the beginning of May.
Canha can also play three outfield positions, first base, and has a reputation for getting on base. Oh, and he can hit free agency this winter if his club option is declined (he’d be owed a $2 million buyout).
The Mets might have to include cash to pay for either of their salaries to try and get a better prospect return. However, that’s something team owner Steve Cohen has said he’s open to doing (and something New York has already done this year).
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
