Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
The Marlins have made Pablo López available on the trade market, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post.
Heyman indicates in his tweet that the Marlins will be looking for hitters in return for the starter. Earlier in the offseason, it was reported the Yankees were close to dealing for López during the 2022 trade deadline but the deal fell through when the Marlins asked for Oswaldo Peraza.
López is one of the many young and talented pitchers in the Marlins rotation. After being an early Cy Young candidate in the first half of 2022, he finished the year with a respectable 3.75 ERA and 108 ERA+ in 180 innings. (He pitched incredibly well against everyone but the Mets.)
With the Marlins inquiring about major league bats and top prospects, the Mets could move players that are currently log jammed in the system. Dominic Smith was relegated to Triple-A for 54 games last season and hit 10 home runs with a .839 OPS. Ronny Mauricio comes to mind as well due to Francisco Lindor holding down the shortstop position for the next decade. Mauricio demonstrated his power last season and hit 26 home runs in Double-A. However, the young shortstop struggles with pitch recognition and had a .296 OBP in 2022.
The Mets also need to fill out their rotation for next season due to Jacob deGrom, Chris Bassitt, and Taijuan Walker opting out of their deals. Lopez would be an incredible and cheap addition to the Mets’ rotation. He is under team control until 2025 and is projected to make $6.28 million in arbitration before the 2023 season.
Read our full trade profile of López for a more in-depth look at the 26-year-old.
