The New York Mets are off to a terrible start as New York has lost 11-straight games and could look to shake up their roster.
New York was looking to return to the playoffs after last year’s disappointment, but the Mets are off to a bad start. With that, MLB analyst Shaan Donohue of Just Baseball proposed a stunning deal that sees New York acquiring Rafael Devers from the San Francisco Giants.
Mets acquire:
- Rafael Devers
Giants acquire:
- Jonathan Santucci
- Elian Pena
The proposed deal would be a blockbuster as New York would push their chips even more in by acquiring Devers for two prospects. The Giants, meanwhile, get out of Devers’ contract just one year after acquiring him.
Devers is in the midst of a 10-year, $313.5 million deal and is under team control through the 2033 season. Devers could replace the void of Pete Alonso and play first base or DH for the Mets. He’s hitting .225 with 2 home runs and 8 RBIs to begin the year with the Giants.
In return, the Mets would return their eighth and ninth-ranked prospects, which would be a surprising return.
Santucci is a left-handed pitcher who’s the team’s ninth-ranked prospect. He’s in AA and could reach the MLB this season and add some more youth to the Giants’ rotation. He’s 0-2 with a 5.25 ERA in three starts this season.
Pena, meanwhile, is the team’s eighth-ranked shortstop and is just 18-years-old. He’s in A and signed in January 2025 as an international free agent. He’s hitting .333 with 1 home run and 9 RBI this season.
Analyst Explains Mets-Giants Swap
The proposed deal is a stunning trade and would be the second-straight year that Devers is traded.
Although Devers is a star player, his contract is a huge one that the Giants may want to get out of, and he’s had a couple of incidents with teammates that could cause his welcome to be short.
“From San Francisco’s perspective, this is about reading the room,” Donohue wrote. “The Giants are off to a sluggish start, the vibes aren’t great, and their manager is already airing some clubhouse tension publicly. That’s not nothing. If there’s even a small appetite to pivot, this is the kind of deal that makes sense.
“They have Bryce Eldridge waiting in Triple-A as a natural replacement at first base with real upside. Elian Peña gives them a potential star, already flashing it at Single-A, while Jonathan Santucci becomes their top pitching prospect overnight and could realistically impact the big league staff by September.”
However, as Donohue noted, a big part of the trade is money, and the Mets might take a swing to stop the early bleeding.
“While Devers might not be a perfect fit in Queens, this isn’t about clean roster construction for the Mets,” Donohue added. “This is about stopping the bleeding before a bad April turns into something worse. It’s panic season, baby. And for a team and fanbase that embody April panic like no other, this move fits a little too perfectly.”
Devers is a three-time MLB All-Star.
New York Confident Team Can Get Through Skid
The Mets have struggled and lost 11 games in a row, but the team believes they can get better.
Mets star shortstop Francisco Lindor is confident that the team can rebound and start getting on a winning streak.
“This feeling sucks. It’s not a good feeling,” Lindor said. “We’re professionals and we got to find a way out of it. We got to do whatever it takes to end up on top after 27 outs, and sometimes 30 outs. It’s just not a good feeling. But nobody here is hanging their heads. Everybody’s got their heads up high, and they’re fighting for each other.”
The Mets are 7-15 and last in the NL East.
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