The New York Mets’ most obvious need these days is left-handed relief pitching.
Bullpen has been a surprising strength for the Mets this season, but the righties have carried the load. After A.J. Minter went down for the year, New York’s entire crop of high-leverage arms (Edwin Díaz, Reed Garrett, Huascar Brazobán, etc.) is all right-handed.
Fortunately, there’s always a handful of lefties ready to make an impact for new teams at the July trade deadline. The real question is which teams will fall far enough out of the race to give the Mets a shot to nab their southpaw talent.
The Boston Red Sox are teetering on the edge. They’re 32-35, and a few more bad weeks could force them to admit defeat. If that happens, perhaps the Mets will bring back an old friend.
In a recent article, FanSided’s Noah Wright named Red Sox setup man Justin Wilson, who is sporting a 2.45 ERA so far this season, as a top prospective Mets trade deadline target.
“Mets fans should be more than familiar with one of those arms: Justin Wilson. Wilson was part of the Mets’ bullpen between 2019 and 2020, producing solid results,” Wright wrote.
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“The veteran southpaw is in the midst of a strong rebound campaign, working to a 2.25 ERA, 2.13 FIP, and 1.25 WHIP across his first 20 innings of work (before the Yankees roughed him up a bit Saturday night). Wilson’s peripherals are mostly strong as well.”
Wilson had a 2.91 in 68 appearances in a Mets uniform. He seems to have good years and bad years with no real indicator as to why which is which, so the Mets may just want to ride out one of the good years while they can.
Red Sox closer Aroldis Chapman is a lefty as well, so the Mets might swing for the fences with him first. But Wilson would be a perfectly fine consolation prize.
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