Good morning, Mets fans!

The trade deadline is today at 6 p.m, and the Mets are expected to do some more dealing. The Mets have engaged in trade talks surrounding Justin Verlander, with the Astros and Dodgers mentioned as the most aggressive in their pursuits. Jack Harris of the LA Times reports that the Mets covet right-handed pitching prospect Emmet Sheehan, who’s currently ranked sixth in the Dodgers’ prospect pipeline. SNY’s Andy Martino reported on Monday night that no trade for Verlander is close, but the Astros could be a fit if they get aggressive. Martino also notes that nothing much has materialized between the Mets and Dodgers.

Justin Verlander. Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Latest Mets News

The Mets continued to deal on Monday, sending Mark Canha to the Brewers in exchange for right-handed pitching prospect Justin Jarvis. The Mets will pay Canha’s salary down all the way to the league minimum. Canha finishes his Mets career with a .259/.359/.395 batting line and 19 homers in 845 plate appearances. Jarvis meanwhile was ranked as the 12-best prospect in Milwaukee’s system by Baseball America. A fifth-round pick in 2018, Jarvis has a 4.33 ERA and 102 strikeouts in 87 1/3 innings between Double-A and Triple-A this season. Tommy Pham has been widely speculated as the next man to be dealt. MMO’s Mike Mayer reports that the Blue Jays, Yankees, Twins, and Dodgers are among the teams that have expressed interest in the veteran outfielder.

The Mets begin a three-game series against the Royals at Kauffman Stadium today. José Quintana (0-2, 3.27 ERA) will make his third start as a Met against veteran right-hander Zack Greinke (1-11, 5.49 ERA). Quintana faced the Royals plenty during his days with the White Sox but is just 3-10 with a 4.17 ERA against Kansas City in 25 starts. The Mets last faced Greinke in 2019 when he was with Arizona, touching him up for four runs in four innings. First pitch is scheduled for 8:10 pm.

Starling Marte traveled to Kansas City with the Mets and said he could return from the injured list any day. The Mets could use Marte to fill the roster spot vacated by Mark Canha.

Pete Alonso was named NL Player of the Week for his performance last week. His week included two multi-homer games.

Latest MLB News

The Diamondbacks have acquired right-handed reliever Paul Sewald from the Mariners in exchange for infielders Josh Rojas and Ryan Bliss, and outfielder Dominic Canzone. The former Met is in the midst of another strong season for Seattle, owning a 2.93 ERA with 60 strikeouts and 21 saves in 43 innings. The Mariners also traded outfielder A.J. Pollock and utilityman Mark Mathias to the Giants in exchange for a player to be named later.

The Cubs have acquired Jeimer Candelario from the Nationals in exchange for infield prospect Kevin Made and left-handed pitcher D.J. Herz. Originally signed by the Cubs in 2010, Candelario is enjoying his finest season in the majors this year, hitting .258/.342/.481 (128 OPS+) with 16 homers, 30 doubles, and 3.3 rWAR in 419 plate appearances. The Cubs also traded outfielder Nelson Velázquez to the Royals for reliever Jose Cuas.

In other Cubs news, they promoted outfield prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong to Triple-A Iowa on Monday. Acquired from the Mets in the Javier Báez and Trevor Williams deal, Crow-Armstrong has a 150 wRC+ since May 23.

The Guardians traded right-hander Aaron Civale to the Rays for first-base prospect Kyle Manzardo. Civale is enjoying his finest season in the majors, turning a strong 2.34 ERA with just five home runs allowed in 77 innings. Manzardo meanwhile is having a down year in Triple-A but owns a .935 OPS across 760 minor-league plate appearances.

The Braves reinstated A.J. Minter from the injured list and optioned A.J. Smith-Shawver to Triple-A Gwinnett. Additionally, Atlanta activated the recently-acquired Nicky Lopez and designated Charlie Culberson for assignment.

Latest on MMO

MMO is giving away two Jett Williams baseball cards to celebrate his promotion to High-A Brooklyn. To enter. To enter, you must retweet the tweet below.

Jack Markowski looks at the performances of Justin Verlander and Pete Alonso, who are the MMO Players of the Week.

Andrew Steele-Davis looks at who’s hot and who’s not in the latest 3 Up, 3 Down.

On This Date in Mets History

1989: Kevin McReynolds hits for the cycle, and Sid Fernandez tosses a complete-game shutout as the Mets down the Cardinals, 11-0. Fernandez strikes out just one batter but holds the Cardinals to only four hits.

2015: Lucas Duda cranks two home runs and hits a go-ahead double in the eighth inning as the Mets take the second straight game from the Nationals, 3-2. Jacob deGrom settles down after a rocky first inning, and Jeurys Familia secures his 28th save of the season. The Mets are now just one game back of Washington in the NL East.

2016: Hours before the trade deadline, the Mets acquire three-time All-Star Jay Bruce from the Reds. Brandon Nimmo is originally speculated to be in the package, but the Mets end up sending Dilson Herrera and Max Wotell to Cincinnati. Bruce has hit 25 homers and owns an .875 OPS in 402 plate appearances. The Mets also re-acquire Jon Niese, sending southpaw Antonio Bastardo back to Pittsburgh.

Birthdays: Gregg Jeffries (56)