The primary objective for the New York Mets this offseason couldn’t be more clear. A Mets rotation that outperformed its projections in the first half of the season fell off the deep end after the All-Star break and was the primary culprit in the team collapsing from 21 games over .500 to finishing out of the playoffs at 83-79. The onus is on president of baseball operations David Stearns this winter to find more concrete rotation solutions moving forward.
Bleacher Report often comes up with wild hypothetical trades, and on Tuesday, they released an article featuring some of their craziest ideas yet. However, buried in the middle was a swap that could make perfect sense for both the Mets and their division rivals, the Washington Nationals.
Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report proposed that the Mets could acquire All-Star lefty Mackenzie Gore from Washington in exchange for top pitching prospect Jonah Tong and first base/outfield prospect Ryan Clifford. Both prospects are among New York’s most prized farmhands in a surprisingly deep system.
“New York’s motivation in this hypothetical swap couldn’t be clearer: Gore had a better season than any pitcher on the Mets’ staff—even with that horrific four-game stretch during the doldrums of the summer in which he allowed 23 earned runs in 15 2/3 innings pitched,” Miller wrote.
On the Nationals’ side, the question remains whether they can envision Gore pitching in a postseason game for them in either 2026 or 2027 before he hits free agency. “Maybe they can, but most of us can’t,” Miller added. He also noted the striking similarity to the state of the franchise three years ago, which led to the colossal Juan Soto trade.
Gore was, of course, one of the major pieces the Nationals acquired when they traded Soto—now a $765 million face of the franchise with the Mets—back in the summer of 2022. At just 26 years old and two years away from free agency, Gore represents a valuable asset.
The Nationals, who will have a new president of baseball operations this year in Paul Toboni, along with a new manager yet to be hired, are unlikely to compete for championships within the next two years. The key question is whether Toboni views Gore as a building block for the rotation, even at a higher price tag, or if he’s more valuable as a trade chip.
Meanwhile, Tong and Clifford could bolster a Washington core that shows promise but also has significant gaps. Perhaps pitching for a contender is exactly what Gore needs to find the consistency he’s never quite maintained over a full season despite his immense talent.
This potential trade scenario presents an intriguing opportunity for both teams as they look to reshape their rosters heading into the offseason.
https://www.newsweek.com/mets-nationals-hypothetical-3-player-trade-actually-makes-sense-10950840
