Could New York Mets super-blockbuster trade with Boston Red Sox make them World Series favorite? Analyzing the possible cost
Despite a shocking slump over the last two weeks, where they lost 10 of 11, the Mets are just three games out from owning the best record in baseball. However, the recent skid did showcase that the team has clear weak spots. And the starting staff may be coming back down to Earth following a hot start to the season.
Advertisement
Upgrading second or third, designated hitter, the bullpen, and adding a pitcher that can start a playoff game are all needs heading into the July trade deadline. Well, there is a prominent team that could soon be sellers, and has several players that should be up for grabs that can address all of New York's issues.
Related: MLB insider suggests bold New York Mets trade idea that sees club give up top 10 prospect for pair of impact relievers
'If they don't mind a modern-day Boston Tea Party with everyone ripping up their tickets, the Red Sox could set the trade deadline ablaze by dealing Alex Bregman before he opts out or trading outfielder Jarren Duran,' USA Today MLB insider Bob Nightengale wrote this week. 'Boston could part with closer Aroldis Chapman and starter Walker Buehler, who joined in the winter on a one-year deal.'
Adding Bregman, Chapman, and Buehler could be the sort of super-blockbuster trade that makes the Mets the team to beat in the NL. But should they pursue such a huge deal?
Advertisement
Alex Bregman stats (2025): .299 AVG, .385 OBP, .553 SLG, .938 OPS, 11 HR, 35 RBI, 32 R
Making the case for New York Mets to make a super-blockbuster trade with Boston Red Sox
Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
The New York Mets have the key pieces to be a title contender again in 2025. The trio of Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso, and Juan Soto makes their batting order one to respect. When healthy, a starting rotation led by Kodai Senga, Sean Manaea, and David Peterson is formidable despite not being big-name talent. And they have a solid bullpen despite their recent slump. But they need more to go all the way.
And the Red Sox have the exact kind of players that could perfectly round out their roster for a World Series run. Bregman is an All-Star-level player who could slot into either second or third. However, placing him at third, letting Ronny Mauricio and Jeff McNeil platoon at second, and moving Mark Vientos to the DH spot could strengthen all three spots with one addition. Plus, Bregman elevates his game in the postseason.
Advertisement
Aroldis Chapman stats (2025): 1.36 ERA, 0.818 WHIP, 14 saves, 48 strikeouts, 10 walks
Despite being 37, Chapman is having a season that could earn him an eighth trip to the All-Star game. He is the sort of dominant reliever the team needs to combine with Edwin Diaz in the playoffs. Dodgers veteran Walker Buehler is having a disappointing season (5-5 record and 6.29 ERA). But the Mets found out last year that he is an absolute gem when the playoffs roll around. Plus, adding him to the rotations could push former Yankees closer Clay Holmes to the pen for the playoffs.
At first glance, it would seem like a lot of payroll to add this year and beyond. However, as Nightengale mentioned, Bregman is likely to test free agency in the offseason. Chapman is a free agent after the season. And Buehler has a mutual option the Mets can choose not to use if he disappoints. But what would be the asset cost of such a huge deal?
Related: Former New York Mets star pitcher gets one last chance to revive MLB career after sitting out since 2023
What would the New York Mets have to give up for Bregman, Chapman, and Buehler?
Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
New York will likely have to part with some meaningful assets in a trade for the Boston trio. However, with Buehler having a down year and all three possibly leaving after the season, it does help bring down the cost somewhat.
Advertisement
In a potential super-blockbuster for the trio of multi-time All-Stars, top-10 prospects Ryan Clifford and/or Drew Gilbert may have to be included. As well as Triple-A right-hander Nolan McLean. However, elite prospects like Jett Williams, Brandon Sproat, and Jonah Tong will be untouchable in such a trade.
Potential New York Mets and Boston Red Sox super-trade
Mets get: Alex Bregman, Walker Buehler, and Aroldis Chapman
Red Sox get: Starling Marte, Ryan Clifford, Drew Gilbert, Nolan McLean, Luisangel Acuna, Brett Baty, and a player to be named later
Of the players that have big league experience, Starling Marte is likely to be included. To send some money back to Boston. Which they won't mind since he comes off the books after the season. Furthermore, fan-favorite Luisangel Acuna likely will be included, and New York may try to add Brett Baty. Despite his recent struggles, the Mets are unlikely to part with former top prospect Francisco Alvarez just yet.
Related: New MLB rumor may have just made New York Mets trade for Luis Robert Jr. a lot easier
Related Headlines
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
15 minutes ago
- New York Times
Giants' reduced roster wins a tight one post-deadline: ‘We've not given up on you guys'
NEW YORK — The energy pulsated through Citi Field in the ninth inning Friday night. Ryan Helsley, the former St. Louis Cardinals closer and most dominant reliever in the National League last season, jogged to the mound to AC/DC's 'Hells Bells' while making his debut with a new team. The New York Mets are using him as a set-up man. More cheers and more energy followed in the bottom of the ninth when Cedric Mullins, a one-time All-Star and Silver Slugger with the Baltimore Orioles, made his debut as a pinch hitter. Here in Queens, he'll be a bench bat. Advertisement The Mets were like most contending clubs, loading up prior to Thursday night's trade deadline. They got stronger on paper. Just as significantly, they got stronger in their own minds. There is no underselling the importance of a vote of confidence from management, especially when that confidence is expressed in actions and not merely in words. Almost every NL contender received that vote of confidence in one form or another, welcoming a wave of roster reinforcements. Several of the biggest acquisitions were in the bullpen. The Mets got Helsley. The San Diego Padres added former A's closer and strikeout machine Mason Miller to an already daunting collection of relief arms. The Philadelphia Phillies gave up two top prospects to get Jhoan Duran and his 100 mph splinker from the Minnesota Twins. Up till 48 hours before the trade deadline, the San Francisco Giants could make a statistical claim that their bullpen was the best in the league. It was the only part of their roster that merited superlatives. Not anymore. Fed up with their inattentive and sloppy play, which culminated in their first 0-6 homestand since 1896, Giants president Buster Posey pivoted into a selling posture. He subtracted longtime setup man Tyler Rogers on Wednesday. Closer Camilo Doval followed him out the door on Thursday. When the Giants arrived at Citi Field to begin a three-game series Friday night, they endured the odd sight of Rogers, who generates the softest contact from the most fearsome swings, warming up in the other bullpen. All of this put Giants manager Bob Melvin in an awkward position with two months of baseball to play. How do you instill confidence in the clubhouse when the front office's actions indicate otherwise? How do you harden the resolve of an underachieving team forced to listen when their opponents introduce new additions to their cheering fans? How do you reset the paradigm when the losses keep piling up? How do you keep an unimproved team from punching the clock and playing out the string? In a pregame meeting, Melvin's remarks were brief. He encouraged his players to look around the room. Advertisement 'The message team is not, 'We've given up on you guys,'' Melvin said. 'It's not at all. Our big core pieces are still here.' So a team with Matt Chapman and Willy Adames and Rafael Devers and Jung Hoo Lee took the mound behind All-Star left-hander Robbie Ray Friday night. They played clean baseball and took a two-run lead in the eighth inning. When an especially unlucky bounce allowed the Mets to tie the score in the eighth, the game turned into a duel between bullpens. And the Giants, with reduced personnel and a freshly minted closer, prevailed. The Giants scored their automatic runner on Dom Smith's single in the top of the 10th, then Randy Rodríguez struck out pinch hitter Ronny Mauricio to strand the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning. The Giants' 4-3 victory didn't put them back on the path to contention, but it allowed them to reset their record at .500 and put mental distance between themselves and the winless homestand that forced management to reconsider their trade deadline strategy. Randy Rodriguez tosses 💯 to close it out 🔥 — SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) August 2, 2025 It didn't make any sense that the Giants fell into a tailspin after the mid-June blockbuster trade that brought Devers from the Boston Red Sox. Who knows? Maybe it won't make any sense for a reduced roster to storm its way back into postseason relevance in August. 'We know we have to be better and play more games like that,' said Adames, who speared a hard grounder to start a double play behind Ray in the third inning. 'And I feel today was a big game to get in a different mood. It's been tough. The boys are feeling it. They knew that tonight, we had to make an adjustment and win that game no matter how. And it went our way. I mean … it almost didn't. But we found a way to be on top.' Advertisement The Mets tied it in the eighth against left-hander Joey Lucchesi, who has elevated himself from non-roster fungibility to a prime relief role. But the Mets received a huge break when Juan Soto's ground ball up the middle clipped Lucchesi's leg and caromed away from Adames for an RBI single. 'It was coming straight at me,' Adames said. ' That's why we were like, 'What the heck is going on?' That was an easy double play. He didn't hit it hard and I was right there. I would've done it myself.' It was the kind of break that's been going against the Giants in recent weeks. They had to endure another with two outs in the 10th when umpires ruled that Pete Alonso checked his swing with a full count. Rodríguez had no margin for error with the bases loaded and threw four consecutive fastballs to Ronny Mauricio, striking him out with a 100.1 mph four-seamer at the knees. 'Look, we had to work hard to get it,' Melvin said. 'The check swing call was ridiculous on Alonso. (Rodríguez) had to go through another guy. But, you know, (facing the) top of the order, man on second to start the inning, that was pretty spectacular for Randy to leave everyone out there. 'We're going through a lot of stuff right now and that one felt like, 'What else can go wrong?' But to battle through and get a win is huge.' The Giants didn't move the needle on their playoff odds Friday. The Padres, now with more fangs in their Cerberus of a bullpen, also won to maintain a six-game lead over the Giants for the final wild-card spot. As much as Melvin stressed that the Giants retained their core pieces, including Ray, who took a no-hitter into the fifth inning, there is plenty of important value to be found on the margins of a roster, too. The 2021 team, an ensemble cast, can present its 107 regular-season victories as evidence. While other contenders added seasoned role players to their roster margins, the Giants called up outfielder Grant McCray and infielder Christian Koss and they will hand the baseball on Saturday to Kai-Wei Teng, a right-hander they designated for assignment a year ago. Teng has made major strides this season at Triple-A Sacramento. He's the best hope they have right now. Advertisement Perhaps soon, the Giants will introduce right-hander Blade Tidwell or outfielder Drew Gilbert, whom they obtained from the Mets for Rogers. They'll have no reason not to take a look at Jesus Rodríguez, the contact-hitting catcher who headlined the New York Yankees' otherwise underwhelming four-player prospect package to acquire Doval. If McCray can't stick, then Gilbert looms as a potential 24-year-old version of Mike Yastrzemski. There is still a chance for the Giants to make something positive out of a frustrating season. It'd help, of course, if Devers didn't strike out in each of his first four at-bats, as he did Friday. Or if Lee can turn more of his soft contact outs into sharply hit singles and doubles. The Giants players who remain understand this much: if it's not working, Posey will step in to make changes. 'Making moves like that showed the players that, hey, look, we're going to do something a little bit different,' Melvin said. 'And maybe that's the case now. Maybe that's part of the message to these guys: We've gotta do things a little differently.' (Photo of catcher Patrick Bailey and Rodríguez celebrating the win: Dustin Satloff / Getty Images)
USA Today
44 minutes ago
- USA Today
Kansas City Chiefs OL Josh Simmons reveals early lessons from training camp
During Friday's training camp press conference, Kansas City Chiefs offensive lineman Josh Simmons revealed the lessons he's taken in from coaches and teammates at Missouri Western State University in preparation for the 2025 season. "Right now, it's really understanding defenses, that way I can play a lot faster, like if I can see a front and anticipate that they may do a stunt, or a blitz, or a defensive end might drop. Then I can easily kind of help Kingsley (Suamataia) and communicate stuff like that," said Simmons, as he takes advice from coaches and veteran teammates, "They put a plethora of just different assets, different like hand movements in my toolbox. So it's like the best resource any rookie can have. Just having that in your back pocket, asking after, like a pass rush, what do I do wrong here? How can I fix it? Then go in the next rep and then make those corrections." The Chiefs selected Simmons with the No. 32 pick in Round 1 of the 2025 NFL draft. During his standout college football career, he earned Third-Team All-Big Ten honors for the 2024 National Champions, the Ohio State Buckeyes. As he progresses in camp, he is in the mix for the starting left tackle position.
CBS News
an hour ago
- CBS News
Jimmy Rollins revisits his 2007 MVP season that kicked off a winning era for the Phillies
There were plenty of times former Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins expressed doubt over the 13 words he said that live in team lore. "I think we are the team to beat in the NL East — finally." Those words could have gone in a significantly different direction than the final result. The Phillies hadn't made the playoffs since 1993 when they entered the 2007 season, after finishing 12 games behind the Mets the previous year. They got off to a 4-11 start. The weight of the world was on Rollins' shoulders. "There were a number of times for sure," Rollins said. "The best part about those times? Every time they came into my head, and you're always gonna have negative thoughts, it was almost like the guys felt it. "We go out the next day and score 9, 10 runs, and the guys were like 'We got you. You're not going through this alone.'" Rollins revisited the 2007 campaign on the night of his Wall of Fame induction at Citizens Bank Park. Rollins was inducted along with Ed Wade, the former Phillies general manager responsible for drafting much of the core that would make up the World Series-winning team in 2008: Rollins, Pat Burrell, Cole Hamels, Ryan Howard and Chase Utley. Everything came to a head in Game 162 on Sept. 30, 2007. The Phillies rallied from a seven-game deficit with 17 games to play to be tied with the Mets on the final day of the regular season. The Mets were on the verge of one of the biggest collapses in baseball history, while the Phillies were mounting one of the biggest comebacks. The Phillies were only tied with the Mets for four games the whole season, matching them in the standings with four games to play on September 27. That was the first time since opening day the teams were even in the standings. They led the NL East for one day prior to Game 162. At worst if the Phillies won, they would play a one-game playoff. That's all Rollins was focused on, even in the midst of an MVP season that defined his Phillies career. "We're in the clubhouse, TVs are off and we're locked in because no matter what happened up north — we have to win a ball game down here," Rollins said. "You hear the crowd, you hear the stands going crazy." The fans were going crazy because the Mets trailed by multiple runs before they even went to bat. First the Marlins were up 3-0, then 5-0. Rollins tried to stay in the zone, knowing the Phillies still had to win against the Nationals. "I don't wanna go out there and be just playing, knowing the Mets are down 5-0," Rollins said. "So you're trying to focus, but I couldn't contain the excitement. "I ran out. I took a deep breath. Regardless of what happened, you have a job to do. I came out here, and said you're out here way too early. I'm too juiced when we're running out. The crowd is acting like we already won, but in my mind we still have to win the ball game." Rollins, as he did that whole 2007 season, set the tone. He led off the bottom of the first with a base hit to center field, then proceeded to steal second, followed by stealing third. Chase Utley knocked in Rollins for the first run of the game, in what ended up being a 6-1 Phillies victory. Rollins put the finishing touches on an MVP campaign on that final day, having two hits — including the triple that made him the fourth player in MLB history to have at least 20 doubles, 20 triples, 20 home runs, and 20 stolen bases in the same season. He set the tone for the Phillies that entire season, leading them to their first playoff appearance in 14 years, and kicking off a winning era that included a World Series title, two National League pennants and five straight NL East division titles. Rollins locked down the National League MVP when he hit .296 with 30 home runs and 94 RBI -- while leading the NL in runs scored (139), at-bats (716), plate appearances (778), and triples (20). Rollins had the most at-bats and plate appearances in a season in NL history. The 2007 season forever put Rollins in Phillies lore, making him the legend he is in Philadelphia today. The battle was real, but the payoff was worth it. "I felt the weight of the world was off my shoulders personally," Rollins said. "From saying we're the team to beat, from the media, from playing 162 games — it was a lot. It was the most fun season for me personally, from the accomplishments to what we were able to do. "When we won game 162, it was 162 games of belief for that to happen. We did it. It wasn't like I did it, or I was right. We did it."
