The New York Mets have the luxury of too many hitters worthy of playing time vying for limited spots in their lineup.
The highly-anticipated return of Pete Alonso puts several Mets on the outside looking in. Mark Vientos is now pushed back to third base on a semi-permanent basis, which leaves former top prospect Brett Baty without a clear path to playing time.
Meanwhile, there are fewer at-bats available for two-time All-Star Starling Marte, who looks to be entering the final season of his lucrative $78 million contract as nothing more than a designated hitter on the short side of a platoon with Jesse Winker.
Could the Mets salary dump Marte? And could they find a way to get some value back for Baty, who only has one minor-league option remaining? These are the questions New York’s front office has to grapple with as spring training begins.
On Monday, SB Nation’s Jeremy Greco proposed a hypothetical trade that would ship both Baty and Marte to the Kansas City Royals in exchange for relief pitcher Hunter Harvey and right fielder Hunter Renfroe.
“(The Mets) just added Pete Alonso back to the team, so they should be more willing than ever to get rid of (Marte),” Greco wrote.
“There was a rumored trade option earlier this off-season to swap Marte and Harvey but the Mets wouldn’t cover enough of his salary. Maybe they could tweak things a little bit with another rumored Royals target (Baty).”
Harvey, 30, is an intriguing arm the Mets could add to their bullpen. He finished last season with a 4.44 ERA in 50 2/3 innings, but he struck out 55, and his FIP was a much more respectable 3.52. Plus, he was very good in 2022 and 2023 with the Washington Nationals.
Whether or not this deal has a chance of happening likely depends on whether the Mets are ready to rip the Band-Aid off with Baty. Salary dumping Marte is great and all, but it can be difficult to admit defeat with a homegrown former top prospect, even if the writing looks to be on the wall.
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