Updated Post – Aug. 1, 11:34

The Padres, Orioles, Dodgers, and Astros are still in the mix for Mets starter Justin Verlander. Jeremy Booth of KHOU was the first to mention the Padres on Tuesday. Jon Heyman of the New York Post confirmed the report.

Original Post – Aug. 1, 10:01

The Mets began their sale last week when they dealt closer David Robertson to the Marlins for Marco Vargas and Ronald Hernandez. Next came Max Scherzer to the Rangers for top 50 MLB prospect Luisangel Acuña. On Monday night, the Mets continued trading pieces when they sent Mark Canha to the Brewers for right-handed pitcher Justin Jarvis. The Mets will trade Tommy Pham on Tuesday before the 6 p.m. ET deadline and could also deal Brooks Raley and/or Omar Narváez, but the big question is will they deal ace Justin Verlander?

Verlander is under contract through the 2024 season, and he also has a vesting option for the 2025 season at $35 million if he pitched at least 140 innings and an independent exam says his right arm is healthy for Opening Day. To complicate things further, Verlander does have a full no-trade clause. So, let’s look at the known teams interested in trading for Verlander.

Justin Verlander. Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Astros

Clearly, the team that Verlander is probably most comfortable with going to, given him being with the Astros for six seasons right before signing with the Mets this offseason. With that being said, the Astros also likely have the worst farm system of all the teams talking to the Mets about Verlander. Though, I don’t think it’s as bad as many would think, as noted by Baseball Prospectus senior prospect writer Jarrett Seidler.

Seidler notes that the Astros have three top 100 prospects in OF Drew Gilbert, OF Ryan Clifford, and 3B Zach Dezenzo.

It feels likely that if Verlander is okay with being traded, the Astros could be his preferred destination.

Dodgers

This is probably the team that the Mets prefer, given the strong pitching prospects that they have in their system, including Emmet Sheehan, Ryan Pepiot, and Gavin Stone. The Dodgers were one of the teams that aggressively pursued Verlander during the offseason, with a reported two-year, $80 million offer on the table before he signed with the Mets.

Dodgers certainly have the pieces to acquire Verlander and might be willing to take on more of his salary than the others that have shown interest. Though, Cohen has shown he’s perfectly fine kicking in cash in trades to make sure the Mets get a better prospect haul back.

Orioles

The Orioles are another team with a ton of young talent they can use to get a big-time pitcher like Verlander. The questions with Baltimore are how much money are they willing to take on because the Mets aren’t going to eat it all, and does Verlander want to go there?

Baltimore is likely to add a starting pitcher before the deadline tonight, and it will be interesting to see if they really become a legitimate landing spot for Verlander. It’s a team fueled by a great bullpen and young position player studs; they don’t have that big-time veteran with a large contract.

Reds

The Reds have been lingering around in the Verlander discussions as they continue their hopes of going from a constant bottom dweller to a serious title contender. Again, a team here that has the young pieces to entice the Mets, but you have to wonder if they’re willing to take on a portion of Verlander’s salary.

Another piece that comes to mind with the Reds, does Verlander want to finish off his career in Ohio?

Mystery Team??

Is there actually a mystery team involved in the Verlander talks? Jon Heyman of the New York Post tweeted out that there was, though he has only talked about the Astros and Dodgers are legitimate candidates to get Verlander. So, his “mystery team” could potentially be the Orioles or Reds, both teams we know have interest from other reports.

The Rays were a team sniffing around the Verlander market early, but they acquired starter Aaron Civale from the Guardians on Monday.

Never count out A.J. Preller getting involved, right?

Get Ready for Anything

Billy Eppler and the front office have done a nice job of getting good value for all the players they’ve traded to this point. You have to believe they likely have at least one or two more trades in them for Tuesday, and it will interesting to see if they can keep with the theme of getting strong returns.

Get ready folks, it could be a crazy day!