The Mets have not often been sellers over the last few years and looking back at the 2023 deadline most of the prospects they have received back have not turned out the way you would have hoped. The most success the Mets have had has come from the players they flipped those prospects for.
In the past the Mets seemed to focus either on name recognition or players close to the majors instead of going for players they could specifically develop. When you look at the players acquired in 2023, there was nothing that really unified player type or skill set. It seemed they grabbed a bit of everything and none of it really has worked out.
The few trades they have made to buy prospects under president of baseball operations have seemed to show the organization is targeting specific player types. Athletic players with strong pitch shapes or good hit tools. It will be interesting to see the strategy as they sell this deadline and see what type of players they target.
Ryan Clifford. Photo by Herm Card
Traded Away Eduardo Escobar (2023)
Eduardo Escobar was the first player moved in the 2023 sell-off. He did not do much for the Angels and the Mets turned this trade into two and a half years of Tyrone Taylor, who they traded in 2026.
RHP Coleman Crow
Soon after the Mets acquired Coleman Crow he underwent Tommy John surgery and was traded to the Brewers and has not been great there. He has made the majors but pitched 18.2 innings this year to a 5.30 ERA and 1.45 WHIP. He has not been great in Triple-A either.
RHP Landon Marceaux
Landon Marceaux was injured for all of the 2024 season and was eventually released by the Mets. He went to the Royals, where he did eventually make two rehab starts before retiring from baseball altogether.
Traded Away David Robertson (2023)
David Robertson was one of the better arms moved at the 2023 deadline but he struggled heavily for the Marlins after the trade. He pitched for Texas in 2024 and in Philly for the second half of 2025 but he seems to have since retired from baseball.
2B Marco Vargas
Marco Vargas looked like he could be a fast riser in the system but injuries have limited him since the trade and it looks like his defense – his calling card – may have taken a hit because of them. He had his first real healthy stretch in 2026 with a .282/.363/.407/.770 slash in 53 games. There were hopes he could project similar to someone like Chase Meidroth and while that may be a long shot, he does have the defense and hit tool to be a bench player in the future.
C Ronald Hernandez
Ronald Hernandez is currently at High-A and it is unclear if he has the skill to continue past the level. He has struggled in Brooklyn but is a switch hitter so there could be some optimism he could improve if he ever reaches Double-A and is not taking half of his at bats in that ballpark. At the time of the trade he was viewed as a capable defender at catcher so this could be a case of needing to hit “just enough” to have a role in the majors as a backup catcher someday.
Traded Away Mark Canha (2023)
The Mets had a player option for Mark Canha so they did not need to trade him at the 2023 deadline. He performed well for the Brewers after the trade and found himself splitting time in Detroit and San Francisco after being traded again in 2024. He was roughly a league-average hitter that season.
RHP Justin Jarvis
When Justin Jarvis was acquired, it looked like he could be pitching depth for the 2024 season but he struggled heavily in Triple-A to a 5.98 ERA and 1.76 WHIP. He elected free agency, struggled with the Dodgers Triple-A team, got hurt, and is now pitching in independent ball.
Traded Away Justin Verlander (2023)
The Mets barely got to see Justin Verlander pitch for them due to injuries and had to eat a significant part of his contract to move him. He mostly struggled for the remainder of his contract, has bounced around since failing to pitch enough to earn his vesting option, and is now planning to retire.
OF Drew Gilbert
Drew Gilbert made multiple top 100 lists but injuries caused his profile to regress significantly. He is no longer truly plus at anything and, without making gains somewhere, likely is more of a future depth piece. He was traded to the Giants where made his debut, but he was just ok in the majors with a .227/.312/.384/.696 slash with 1.5 bWAR and 1.8 fWAR across 173 games. He is not amazing defensively, and his future may be in one of the corners, but he does not seem to have the offensive ceiling to be someone you want regularly playing there. He could be a fourth outfielder he has a history of lower body and might not hit or defend enough for that either.
1B/OF Ryan Clifford
Ryan Clifford is a hard player to evaluate because his variance goes to extremes on both ends. In 2025 he seemed to make huge gains in his contact rates and launched onto top 100 lists. In 2026, he has given every gain back and looks like he is unlikely to be protected in the rule five draft. He went on the development list towards the end of the season, but in a very small sample after returning, he did improve. Maybe he has a future as a platoon bench bat or a depth piece but his defense is not good enough for him to be rostered when he is not hitting. The power is real, and he has bounced back from stretches like he has had in 2026 before, so if you squint you can see a path to future playing time.
Traded Away Max Scherzer (2023)
Max Scherzer took a big step back in 2023 due to injuries, and while the Rangers won the World Series in 2023, it seemed to be in spite of Scherzer’s efforts. He had to be heavily managed and put up one of his worst-ever postseason performances of his career.
2B Luisangel Acuña
Luisangel Acuña was a hero in 2024 for about a week while Francisco Lindor was on the injured list. The Mets do not likely make the playoffs if he does not have that crazy week. He started to fade in 2024 after that week and has not done much since. He did win rookie of the month the first month of 2025, but that was more a testament to how weak the rookie class was that first month. He was trending to being designated for assignment heading into 2026 before the Mets traded him for Luis Robert Jr. Things have gone about as bad as they could for Acuña in Chicago as he has a .589 OPS and 50 WRC+. He has been worth -0.1 bWAR and -0.3 fWAR and it seems like it will be hard to justify tendering him a contract for 2027.
Traded Away Tommy Pham (2023)
Tommy Pham had a good bounce-back season with the Mets and they kept up the annual tradition of being a team to trade him at the deadline.
3B Jeremy Rodriguez
Jeremy Rodriguez in 2023 looked like a real steal and a pop-up prospect but the positives for his Mets tenure end there. He has yet to be able to perform at all in Low-A and was demoted back to rookie ball again in 2026. He is still only 19 years old but he needs to make significant gains with the bat to stay in the organization since he likely needs to be a third baseman and not a shortstop.
Traded Away Dominic Leone (2023)
The Mets grabbed Dominic Leone as depth in free agency, he struggled, and then they flipped him at the deadline. Jackson did not work out for the Mets but the trade was good process.
UT Jeremiah Jackson
Jeremiah Jackson struggled heavily with the Mets Triple-A team in 2024 and at the end of the season elected free agency. Instead of agreeing to return to the Mets he chose to go to Baltimore in free agency, where he performed well in 2025 with a .775 OPS and 116 OPS+. He has struggled more in 2026 with a .611 OPS and 67 WRC+ but at least he looks like he could be a depth piece as long as he has options.
Traded Away Justin Slaten (2024)
Justin Slaten was grabbed in the rule five draft and immediately traded. He has had success in the majors as a reliever, something the Mets could have used the last few years.
LHP Ryan Ammons
Ryan Ammons has pitched very well for the Mets since the trade with a 2.51 ERA and 1.22 WHIP across 82.1 innings in Low-A and High-A. He excels at generating swing-and-miss and is running a 33.5% strikeout rate in Brooklyn. He could be a name to watch as he moves through the minors. He missed all of 2026 on the injured list, being placed on the full season injured list in March.
Traded Away Jeff McNeil (2026)
The Mets overhauled their roster heading into 2026 and that included moving veteran Jeff McNeil. McNeil has struggled heavily with a .637 OPS and 75 OPS+ and it is surprising he is still on the Athletics roster.
RHP Yordan Rodriguez
Yordan Rodriguez is a high upside pitcher but has yet to pitch for the Mets due to injury. At the time of the trade he was viewed as a helium prospect so we will see if that continues when he returns.
Traded Away David Peterson (2026)
David Peterson struggled heavily in 2026 with the Mets after a good career with the Mets. Leading up to the trade the question was more if he could be traded than for what he could be traded, so him bringing back a legitimate prospect who has true major league upside if healthy is a big win.
1B Cole Mathis
Cole Mathis was injured when he was traded to the Mets and got scattered playing time with injuries mixed in. He is playing in the AFL and he has looked better under the hood than his slash line. He hits the ball incredibly hard and has a good hit tool. He could rocket through the system if he stays healthy and it looks like health is the real thing that could prevent him from contributing in the majors in the next few years. The tools are real, he just needs to play.
Traded Away Luke Weaver (2026)
The Mets sent Luke Weaver to the Pirates with cash added to improve their return despite having Weaver under control for 2027. Weaver got poison ivy and struggled in the second half of 2026 and it will be interesting to see if the Pirates keep him or trade him.
SS Samma Stafura
A few weeks before being traded, Sammy Stafura made a swing change that allowed him to get to more power while improving his contact rates. This carried over to the Mets, where he saw a spike in his exit velocities and he slashed .244/.357/.415/.772 with plus-plus defense at shortstop. A median outcome might be Jose Siri with Masyn Winn defense at shortstop which is a valuable player to stick at shortstop. Another comparison could be Colson Mongtomery of the White Sox.
Traded Away Brooks Raley (2026)
Brooks Raley with the Mets was one of the best left-handed relievers they have ever had. With the Phillies, he struggled so heavily to a 7.94 ERA he did not even make their postseason roster.
RHP Luke Gabrysh
Just as he topped Baseball America‘s stuff+ charts, Luke Gabrysh looks like he should fly through the Mets minor league system as well as up Mets prospect lists. He made it to Double-A and while the ERA was not pretty in the very small sample, he looked incredible under the hood.
OF John Spikerman
John Spikerman is a glove-first outfielder but he did show offensive improvements with gains in his exit velocities. Time will tell how sticky those gains are but with the Mets he slashed .219/.366/.384/.749. He should hit for a better average over a longer sample but still looks to be a glove-first outfielder.
Traded Away Huascar Brazobán (2026)
Huascar Brazobán struggled on the field and with injuries for the White Sox after being traded throwing only 14.1 innings to a 4.40 ERA and 1.40 WHIP. He only got one out in the postseason.
RHP Gabe Davis
Gabe Davis has some of the most electric stuff in the Mets system and across his 21.1 innings in orange and blue threw to a 2.53 ERA and 1.31 WHIP. He does walk too many batters but he excels at generating whiff and striking batters out. If he continues to pitch like this he could quickly make the jump to Syracuse in 2027 and then he is only a short ride away from Queens.
RHP Zach Franklin
Zach Franklin may have earned Rule Five Draft protection throwing to a 1.72 ERA and 1.02 WHIP across his 15.2 innings as a Met down the stretch. The Mets did trade for him knowing he would need to be protected, and he could be a big factor in the Mets bullpen in 2027.
Traded Away Clay/ Holmes and Tyrone Taylor
Clay Holmes had a strong 2026 for the Mets that was cut short by a leg injury due to a comebacker. He was much more mixed with the Cubs but did pitch better overall than his 4.25 ERA would suggest. He did not pitch in the postseason for the Cubs. Tyrone Taylor was incredible for the Cubs with a .890 OPS but only got one at-bat in their postseason run.
SS/3B/2B Jefferson Rojas
Jefferson Rojas will definitely be put on the 40-man roster this offseason and he might have the inside track to make the opening day roster out of spring training, similar to Carson Benge in 2026. He improved his exit velocities with the Mets, looks sharp defensively, and slashed .280/.336/.593/.929 across 29 Double-A games, earning a promotion to Triple-A where he slashed .308/.345/.692/1.037 across six games.
Traded Away A.J. Minter
A.J. Minter put up good results in 2026 with the Mets but under the hood he looked much more like a middle reliever than a leverage arm and the trade deadline return reflected that. He pitched well with the Twins but that move wasn’t enough to help them make the playoffs.
2B Bruin Agbayani
Bruin Agbayani was injured when the Mets traded for him and only made it into three games. he has struggled in the AFL and has yet to barrel up a ball. He has a good hit tool but outside of that is very limited.
1B Billy Amick
Billy Amick is the stereotypical three-true-outcomes hitter with plus power, who draws walks, and has a poor hit tool. This type of profile is very boom or bust, and typically guys with his contact issues are not successful major leaguers, but the power is real and if he can buck the trend he could impact the Mets’ major league roster in 2027.
Traded Away Freddy Peralta
Freddy Peralta started strong with the Mets but then struggled heavily in the second half of his tenure in Queens. He made some minor changes in Tampa after the trade which led to better results but under the hood not much changed, and in some ways, like his lack of strikeouts, he arguably regressed. That style of pitching might not be sustainable over a full season and that came to a head in his World Series blowup.
2B/SS Emilien Pitre
Emilien Pitre is one of the Mets’ most exciting prospects and could impact the Mets in 2027. He is probably more of a utility player but he has a plus hit tool alongside fringe power. Evaluators are split on his defense but he made it to Triple-A and slashed .260/.357/.370/.727 with better metrics under the hood. Before that in Double-A with the Mets, he slashed .375/.386/.375/.761.
RHP Gary Gill Hill
Gary Gill Hill is an interesting pitching prospect who should be protected in the Rule Five Draft and should impact the Mets 2027 roster. He lives off attacking hitters with a deep pitch mix with pitches that break both in and away from hitters and he ended the season with one outing in Triple-A. In Double-A with the Mets, he threw to a 3.76 ERA and 1.22 WHIP.
OF Aidan Smith
Aidan Smith is the type of former hype prospect teams like to grab and make swing adjustments with and he has the tools to be a major leaguer if the Mets can harness his skill set. His future may be a speedy fourth outfielder but he has the raw talent to be more. He got great results with the Mets, slashing .321/.414/.524/.938 so it will be interesting to see what adjustments he makes and what level he starts at in 2027.
