If there’s one position dragging down the potential of the New York Mets’ lineup, it’s center field.
Tyrone Taylor is a great player to have on a roster, but he’s not a bat you want in your lineup every day. Meanwhile, Jose Siri is still out indefinitely, and the Mets don’t seem to be eager to move Jeff McNeil to center on a full-time basis.
So if New York is going to make any bold moves on the trade market this summer, center field is probably the safest bet. There’s just one problem: that market isn’t chock-full of exciting players.
Nevertheless, one baseball writer believes New York could take a stab at a struggling former All-Star from the hapless Chicago White Sox.
On Friday, Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller named the Mets among the potential suitors for White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr., who is having a brutal season and tanking his own trade stock in the final year of his $50 million extension.
“Robert has at least been healthy, though. So healthy, in fact, that he somehow leads the majors in stolen bases despite possessing one of the worst batting averages among qualified hitters,” Miller wrote after noting the 27-year-old’s struggles.
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“Moreover, center fielders worth anything close to a darn aren’t exactly growing on trees and readily available at the trade deadline. The Phillies and Mets could both use one.”
The bad: Robert is slashing .190/.276/.307. It’s shocking to see, because he hit 38 home runs only two seasons ago, and he’s still so young. But baseball is a tough sport, and it’s hard to perform well when you play on one of the worst teams in MLB history.
The good: Robert has 21 steals, and his bWAR is somehow above zero despite his languishing offense. If he ever starts hitting the ball out of the ballpark again, he instantly becomes one of the top center fielders in the game again.
Are the Mets willing to roll the dice on the good Robert showing up for the last three months of the baseball calendar?
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