Disputing a couple of reports from Jon Heyman and Ken Rosenthal before the weekend, MLB Network radio analyst Jim Duquette says there are “nothing to the rumors connecting the Mets to outfielders Justin Upton, Carlos Gomez and Jay Bruce right now.”
Mets beat writers seem to agree as they all seem to have the Mets aiming lower for guys like Gerardo Parra and Aramis Ramirez.
July 17
Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports recently spoke to a rival executive who came up with a couple of interesting trade ideas involving New York and San Diego.
“Recently I heard the Mets were talking to the Padres, so I asked a rival executive for his opinion. The exec guessed on some possible Mets targets — Justin Upton, Joaquin Benoit, Kimbrel — then said: “I wonder if they would try to get Tyson Ross and flip one of their starters for offense.”
In 110 innings this season, Ross owns a 5-6 record and a 3.34 ERA. He has struck out 118 batters, but he leads the league in walks with 55.
Rosenthal also adds that there is no excusing the Mets if they fail to improve their lineup.
“This will not be the Mets’ only chance to contend — their rotation, barring a series of major injuries, should be pretty darned good in the future, too. That said, the Mets will have no excuse for failing to upgrade their offense — only the Phillies are averaging fewer runs per game in the NL.”
Additionally, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports says the Mets are “aiming high” in their pursuit of an outfield bat and have both Carlos Gomez and Justin Upton on their radar whom they consider “difference makers.”
Heyman also adds that Mets will only have interest in Aramis Ramirez if they were to get any further bad news on the David Wright front.
Since the Mets need to prioritize their lineup first, I don’t think Kimbrel and Benoit make a lot of sense. The Mets already have a solid bullpen with Jeurys Familia, Jenrry Mejia and Bobby Parnell. Adding anyone else into the mix is unnecessary.
However, Justin Upton and the Tyson Ross idea are exactly the kind of trades the Mets need to consider, and Carlos Gomez would be huge too.
As we covered on MMO earlier this week, Justin Upton’s production will significantly strengthen the Mets lineup. He’s batting .253 this season with 14 home runs and 48 RBI in 87 games.
Last season for Atlanta, he belted 29 home runs and had a .833 OPS.
