The New York Mets were 54-48 on July 30, the day of the trade deadline.
At that time, they had lost ace Jacob deGrom and shortstop Francisco Lindor to injury, just a couple additional victims of a season-long injury spree.
However, they were the two most prominent players on the Mets’ roster, and the team needed proper replacements if they wanted to keep their first place spot in the National League East.
They ended up bringing in starter Rich Hill and shortstop/second baseman Javier Baez.
Predictably, they have been slowly falling out of the postseason race.
Baez is dynamic, and offers a power-speed combo to go with excellent defense.
His offense, however, can be erratic at times, as he fails to consistently get on base.
Baez has a .210/.258/.452 with a .709 OPS with the Mets since coming over from the Chicago Cubs.
Additionally, he started a silent feud with fans by making thumbs-down signs in response to the constant booing he and his teammates have endured.
"I didn't mean to offend anybody. And if I offended anybody, we apologize."
-Javy Baez on his thumbs down celebration to booing fans
(via @SNYtv) pic.twitter.com/NW6z6CTof3
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) August 31, 2021
Here are three players that would have benefited the Mets more.
3. Jose Berrios
With Carlos Carrasco dealing with a long absence, and deGrom, Joey Lucchesi, Jordan Yamamoto, and Noah Syndergaard on the shelf, it was clear that the Mets needed an ace or at least someone dependable, for the rest of the season and a hypothetical offseason.
Maybe Jose Berrios is not a clear-cut ace, but he is at least a reliable number two, and that would have been enough for the Mets’ needs: a consistent innings-eater with a sub-3.80 ERA to plug in the rotation.
Berrios was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for two top-100 prospects, but the Mets had some of those.
Perhaps the Mets couldn’t match a package like Austin Martin plus Simeon Woods Richardson, but perhaps they could and didn’t want to.
Berrios has a 3.73 ERA in six starts with his new team.
A top pitcher like Max Scherzer would have been excellent, but he didn’t want to go to New York.
2. Trevor Story
The Colorado Rockies may have been asking a lot for Trevor Story, because they ended up retaining him.
But they should have traded him, and the Mets should have traded for him.
Nothing suggests he could have opposed to a position change, and he could have vastly improved the Mets’ defense and offense.
Perhaps he could have taken over Lindor at shortstop while he rehabbed and later slid over to second base when the former was ready to return.
There is no way to tell what the Rockies’ ask was, but we do know that Story would have looked a lot better than Baez.
1. Kris Bryant
The Mets have been connected to Kris Bryant for months.
The fit is such an obvious one: the Mets like J.D. Davis’ bat at third base but not his glove, and Jonathan Villar’s offensive ceiling is not particularly high even though he has played well in 2021.
Bryant was the whole package: offense, defense, versatility, power, contact, and winning pedigree.
If you consider the package that the San Francisco Giants gave the Cubs, you would have to think the Mets could, and should have matched that.
Now, the Mets infield is not very reliable, and Bryant is hitting .279/.326/.558 with six homers and a pristine .884 OPS with San Francisco.
Kris Bryant keeps reminding the Mets why they should have gotten him
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) August 26, 2021
Of all the trades they could have made over the one that brought in Baez, this would have made the most sense for the Mets.
NEXT: Javy Baez And Mets Fans Seem To Move Past Thumbs Down Drama