The New York Mets have always been known for their star-studded pitching. The Mets have a rotation consisting of Jacob deGrom, Carlos Carrasco, Marcus Stroman, Joey Lucchesi, and David Peterson. The Mets also have all-star pitcher Noah Syndergaard, who should come back mid-season recovering from Tommy John surgery. However, despite this rotation looking pretty good on paper, the Mets could look for more. The back end of the rotation is questionable, Lucchesi did not pitch much in 2020 and was not great when he did pitch, Peterson is still young and has not played much, Stroman did not pitch at all in 2020, and Syndergaard is returning from Tommy John surgery. I believe the Mets should look at a trade for Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Germán Márquez or Chicago Cubs star starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks. Trades for one of these pitchers would put their rotation over the top.
Why These Pitchers could be Available
The Rockies and Cubs both seem to be shedding payroll by trading away players with high contracts. The Cubs have traded star pitcher Yu Darvish to the San Diego Padres because of his large contract. The Cubs have also looked at trading away upcoming free-agent third baseman Kris Bryant. The Rockies have traded away superstar third baseman Nolan Arenado to the St. Louis Cardinals due to his massive contract. So it’s not unlikely to assume that Hendricks and Márquez could be available.
Trade For Kyle Hendricks
But what would it take to get these guys? Now for the Cubs, it is a little complicated. The Cubs want to get rid of Bryant because he will be a free agent following the 2021 season. So a trade for Hendricks will most likely have to include Bryant. The Mets adding Bryant would be a luxury, not a necessity since they already have a third baseman with JD Davis. Davis would almost certainly be involved in a Bryant trade. Adding Hendricks would make the rotation incredible. Hendricks is one of the most consistent players in the league, year in and year out he will provide an earned run average ranging from the twos to high threes. Hendricks is a 31-year-old veteran on a pretty good contract. He is coming off a season sporting an ERA of 2.88. Last year he led the majors in walks per nine innings.
What Would the Hendricks Trade Be?
So everyone knows Hendricks is a good pitcher now what would it take to get him? Now I would assume Bryant would be involved. Bryant only has one year left of team control, he is coming off a shaky year, and he has a history of injury problems. His trade value is probably at an all-time low. For the year of Bryant, I would say it would be JD Davis and Mets top 10 prospect Mark Vientos. Most likely some lower-tier prospects would be involved. As for getting Hendricks. Bryant being involved helps the Mets land, Hendricks. But the specific players involved for him would most likely be Mets top pitching prospect Thomas Szapucki, top pitching prospect Junior Santos, MLB relief pitcher Jeurys Familia, and more. The structure of the trade would revolve around these players.
Trade for Germán Márquez
The Rockies’ front office is probably the worst one in the MLB. Jeff Bridich is easily the most incompetent general manager in the game. He traded Nolan Arenado for next to nothing and still has to pay $51 million of Arenado’s contract. So getting Márquez might not be too difficult. That is why the Mets should pursue Márquez, his ERA is in the high threes to mid fours range, he pitches well outside of Coors Field, his contract is team friendly and includes a team option for the 2024 season, and he should be somewhat easy to trade for. If the Rockies are looking to blow up their team fully, the next step for them would be to move Trevor Story and/or Germán Márquez. Now, what would it take for Márquez?
What Would the Márquez Trade Be?
If I had to guess the centerpiece on the Mets side would most likely include Thomas Szapucki and most likely Joey Luchessi or David Peterson. The Mets are most likely looking to get rid of Familia due to his contract. If the Mets were to trade Familia to the Rockies (or Cubs) his contract would need to be retained by the Mets partially. I do not see the Mets trading Peterson but that would most likely be one of the players the Rockies would want. But because the Cardinals got Arenado for much less I do not see Peterson being dealt. I imagine 3B prospect Mark Vientos would be mentioned in these trade talks as well. I believe this to be a reasonable expectation for getting Márquez.
