The Mets have been tied to White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. in trade rumors for months. Talks between New York and Chicago are ongoing, and MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand writes that the Mets remain one of the more aggressive suitors.
According to Feinsand, Mets infielder Luisangel Acuña is among the players whom the teams have discussed. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale wrote over the weekend that the White Sox wanted Mark Vientos included in a Robert return. Even with Vientos amidst a down year, that’s a significant ask given Robert’s offensive inconsistency. The 23-year-old Acuña has not shown anywhere close to the same upside as Vientos did a season ago, when he batted .266/.322/.516 with 27 home runs.
Acuña is a much better defensive player than Vientos, but he has a more limited offensive profile. The righty-hitting Acuña has a career .253/.300/.354 line with a trio of homers in 91 games. He has a similar .260/.303/.356 slash in 640 Triple-A plate appearances. Acuña is a decent contact hitter but has minimal power.
With Francisco Lindor locked in at shortstop, Acuña has mostly played second base in Queens. Prospect evaluators credit him with the athleticism and arm strength to play shortstop. That could make him more valuable to another team than the Mets. The White Sox are using Colson Montgomery more often at third base. Fellow rookie Chase Meidroth is playing more shortstop. Meidroth has a good approach but only has managed three homers in his first 82 MLB games. Most scouting reports while he was in the minors projected him as a long-term second baseman.
It’s not clear how likely the Mets are to land Robert, nor is it a guarantee that Acuña would be in the return. He’s presumably one of many players whom the teams have discussed as they kick around potential frameworks. The Sox have at least floated the idea of holding their center fielder beyond the deadline if they don’t get a strong prospect package. Robert is technically controllable for two more seasons via successive $20MM club options.
It’d seem more likely that he’ll be bought out for $2MM next offseason, but the White Sox have pushed the idea that they could exercise the first option rather than accept a suboptimal trade return. Their actions over the next 36 hours will reveal whether that’s a genuine consideration or a mere negotiating stance. In addition to New York, the Padres and Phillies have shown recent interest in Robert.
Acuña is the obvious choice to trade for the Mets. He has no position and is expendable compared to Vientos, Mauricio, Baty, McNeil and Jett Williams.
Agreed that Acuna should be moved. If the Mets can’t do better than Robert that seems like a massive miss by the Mets.
I don’t think it obvious. Robert holds virtually zero value given how much he makes.
I think that’s a stretch. LRJ is at $15M this season and both ’26 and ’27 are $20M team options.
IMHO, he’ll easily be worth the remaining $5M he is owed this season. Even excluding his one big season, he’s been a 3.6 bWAR/600 AB player.
I think all he is is a health risk.
Just what the Mets need; an often-injured player batting .206 who the league has already figured out how to pitch to. Does the time machine come along with him so he can play like he did?
Please Mets don’t do this as a longtime fan I don’t know how many stupid deals I can put up with.
Health RISK is a BIG concern; why downplay it
Long term exoendable but his speed and fkexibke defense make him a key cog on the 26 man roster. The piunt if a deadline deal is to strengthen the 2025 roster. Id prefer the Nets offer mud orispect(s) like Boston Baro but what they offer depends on what other teams iffer too. Robert’s .640 OPS and contract ($40m 2026/27) significantly deminishes what the ChiSox can get in return.
Those are club options. The only guaranteed money is $2 million for the buyout.
Jett Williams would never be available in a Luis Robert trade. I don’t think Ronny Mauricio would be available, either, since he does too many things well. That leaves Mark Vientos, Brett Baty, and Luisangel Acuña.
As a White Sox fan, I would be fine with Baty, because I think we finally have someone in the dugout who is not asleep at the wheel (either figuratively OR literally) who can shield him from RHP.
Vientos and Acuña do absolutely nothing for me. We already have Mark Vientos; his name is Miguel Vargas. We already have a bunch of noodle bat Luisangel Acuña clones in the minors as well.
If it takes more to get Baty than just Robert, then throw in Adrian Houser and a reliever like Dan Altavilla or Steven Wilson and get back two guys who are likely to be left unprotected by the Mets at Rule 5 time anyway.
Luis Robert is not coming to the Mets for anyone. Stearns is not stupid.
No way in HELL that we want Houser back; he has proven he can’t perform under the big city lights! Completely fell apart in NY.
I surely hope Stearns is not that stupid; we will see.
Mononey–Well said. Separately I posted a trade proposal of LRJr, Steven Wilson and Houser for Baty. Vargas at 1B, Mediroth 2B, Colson SS and Baty at 3rd. Stay away from Vientos–ugly year and weak defense and we already have a bunch of guys that do what Acuna does.
The Mets aren’t trading for Luis Robert jr. Acuna can play CF. Drew Gilbert can be called up. Robert will cost the Mets his prorated salary, 110% of his prorated salary, players/prospects, and a 2 mil buyout. Robert is not the answer to a team that need offense from the CF position.
“Acuna can play CF.”
McNeil is more than adequate out there as well. Agreed on the rest of your points as well, aside from maybe Drew Gilbert. His .963 OPS over his last 32 games is tempting, though.
If he doesn’t pan out, he can always be sent down. Once we’ve traded for a guy like Roberts, we’re stuck with him. I just don’t believe Stearns is going to dumpster dive with the season on the line. Robert just sat out 2 games with a leg problem. He has a history of injury. If Stearns would trade for him, he should be fired for malpractice.
I would probably trust Stearns by now if I was a Mets fan.
Roberts could be a all star with Mets.
Sox could eat his salary for better trade return.
If the Mets are going to take a chance on a player, it won’t be Luis Robert jr. We need offense, not a guy with a .206 BA, and a .690 OPS. Hard pass
Stearns won’t be concerned with his avg ops. Won’t even look at it.
“Roberts could be a all star with Mets.”
He’ll be a free agent this offseason, so if you really think that, they could just sign him for peanuts in the offseason.
“Sox could eat his salary for better trade return.”
Not a concern at all for the Mets.
It was a concern for the Mets fan I was replying to.
If he hits in August September October the Mets can pick up the option. 1 year 20 some million would be a bargain.
“It was a concern for the Mets fan I was replying to.”
The Mets fan you were replying to didn’t mention a thing about money, so no, it wasn’t a concern. That Mets fan doesn’t want Robert at all, and the Sox eating money doesn’t change that. Because, again, the Sox eating salary would not be a concern at all for the Mets. If they were acquiring Robert, *the Mets* would gladly take on all of the remaining salary in order to reduce the prospect cost for Robert.
“1 year 20 some million would be a bargain.”
You’re taking a major leap of faith there. Robert would need to have like a 1.000 OPS the remainder of the season for anyone to consider the $20 million option. He’s been so bad for long enough that he’d need to light it up for that option to make any sense, and you’d still be running the risk that next year he doesn’t revert back to garbage and be far from a bargain.
Well they used the word cost once, buyout once and salary twice.
No one was talking about the Mets concerns except you.
1000 ops huh so not 900 not 800 has to be 1000. Has to be entire time or what if he struggles in August but they made adjustment and he has 1000 ops in September?
He’s been so bad for long enough that he’d need to light it up for that option to make any sense
===========================
He was actually bad for only two months. Since the start of June, he has a .777 OPS. At the age of not-quite 28, I’d bet on a positive reversion.
Robert would be a nice fit on the Mets. As a sox fan, Nick Morobito and Felipe De LaCruz would be a good return.
Robert is a bum. If he weren’t, you wouldn’t want to trade him. He he were worth it, you’d pick up his 2 options. He’s not. Stop pretending he is.
He could hit like prime Mike Trout for the rest of the season, and the White Sox STILL would decline the option. You obviously don’t know their owner.
I am aware that your owner is extremely cheap. But with the amount of time Robert has spent on the IL, I don’t blame him in this case. I would be very hesitant about picking up his option too.
Even if Acuna could player centerfield, he sucks. He has never projected to be anything more than a light-hitting, speed and defense, utility player
Projections don’t mean anything. What a player actually does is what is important. And when Lindor get hurt last season, the kid stepped up, and hit very well up in the majors, and played an excellent SS. So don’t come at me with projections. Projections are just a means to prejudice a player, and ignore their progress. I’ll take what i’ve seen with my own 2 eyes rather than what your projections say.
Jdt8312: You and me are on the same page. Screw the projection (metrics) and use your eyes to see how good a player is.
I’m curious what your eyes are telling you. He has -0- HRs, a 34/11 K/W, and 2 innings in CF in the pros.
Acuna is terrible. I can see that also with my eyes.
I just told you what I saw from him last year. When it mattered the most, he stepped up. He filled in, and hit well, with power, when Lindor hurt his back late last year, during a playoff run. Not every player has that in them, and maybe that’s something that the metrics don’t measure accurately, or at all. And for the obvious monetary reasons, he’s a better bet than Luis Robert jr. We don’t even know if that guy can play in NY. In 50 years of watching baseball, I can’t count how many big stars came to play for both the Yankees, and Mets, and had horrible first years here. There is value in knowing a guys makeup. And if Luis Robert jr is the kind of guy who can’t motivate himself in Chicago, he won’t do well in NY, and he’s not the type of player that is going to help bring a World Series to the Mets.
Take off the blinders, because he hasn’t played enough this season for you to be able to tell that. Check his AAA numbers. He’s got more of them this season than MLB numbers.
Robert sucks too. And he is a much more expensive suck.
He is against LHP.
The Mets have a healthy .759 OPS against RHP and a paltry .659 OPS against LHP. Robert’s overall numbers are terrible, but he has a mammoth .977 OPS against lefties.
A few key hits against lefties down the stretch could mean the difference between winning the division and settling for a wild card.
Fine. He hits lefties. How is he gonna do for the other 4-5 games a week? He’s a .200 hitter any way you slice it, and I’m not falling for a n2 week spike in his numbers. He was batting .190 before the break. Any way you slice it, and stat you name, you can’t overcome that. He is not what the Mets need. The Mets need a player who hit lefties, and righties, and goes and gets it in CF.
Acuna will get good and the White Sox will trade him back to the Mets in a few years
Possible, and he’s still young, but he’s looked like a utility bench player so far in his AAA and MLB career. He does have speed and defense (skill and versatility), so he could stick around in the league for quite a while, but his bat leaves a lot to be desired.
He won’t get good. Has never projected to being anything other than a utility player
I’m not a Robert fan. Never was. I hope the Mets do not go this route.
I’m a Robert fan. Always was. I hope the Sox don’t trade him.
I hope you get your wish.
I hope they don’t.
If the Sox can get Acuna for him they should personally drive Robert to Queens.
The Mets are not trading for Luis Robert jr. We need offense out of CF. The last thing we need is another guy batting just over .200 manning the position.
You would get chunks of superstar-level offense from him, but only against LHP.
Sorry, not interested. I need someone who hits lefties, and righties, and who hasn’t sat out 2 games with a leg injury just recently, and doesn’t have a history of being on the IL. Robert is not going to be a NY Met.
Then maybe Jerry could stay there…
I hope the socks hang onto their near mendoza line hitting CF
WSox have enough light hitting decent defender youth in-house. Whatever mid-tier position player prospect they get from whoever, pursue someone with power…..and just kick in the 2 mil for club option to negate that cost consideration for buyer.
They collect noodle bats like Pokemon.
Robert Jr. and Soto on the same team could be like catching lightning in a bottle or could be a rolling dumpster fire. Regardless, it just spells Mets. Let’s make it happen.
Soto is on pace for 6+ WAR season. What are you talking about?
Probably a rare Marlins fan prattling on with non-sense
Well Soto can be negative impact on other players. Look at Trent Grisham. Before Soto came to the Padres he was gold Glover trying to be all around player. Then he shows up and it was low average , strikeouts, going for homers. Show boating. This year not around him again and has gone back to basics and being all around player. Then you look at the divide that happened in Padres clubhouse too. He absolutely can be a distraction and poor leader.
Hadn’t thought about this until I saw the news Locklear was being called up and it sounded possible that Raley could be the corresponding move via trade or IL (now know IL).
That would mean we need another OF, even if Raley is just IL, and even if we keep Moore. Canzone has been excellent so far, but he simply can’t hit lefties.
If he can be had cheap-ish if we don’t ask them to take any of the money left this year, a platoon of Canzone and Luis Robert could be sick.
Could always pinch run when not starting even if you dont want him to hit, could take some pressure off him and his health, excellent defensive sub, and he absolutely CRUSHES lefties. Even in this terrible year of his, the OPS against lefties is a rounding error to 1.000 (.996).
And Raley could be a great cheap controllable OF with sneaky speed coming back in a trade package (assuming current IL issue isn’t significant). Even without him in a package, now I’m intrigued and wondering what it would realistically take…
Would be a great fit for Seattle. The only problem is he a has a team option in the off-season for $20 million, which the Mariners will not exercise, to cut costs. Therefore, they’d want to give up a rental type of offer, whereas the White Sox are looking to get a few decent prospects from someone desperate enough to cough them up.
Yeah I just dont see any team viewing his two $20M option years as an asset, so at this point his value is basically just as a rental.
And the pale hose need OFs with pop. Raley certainly has that and has plus speed, even though he is almost 31 he is barely making more than league minimum and still has 3 more arbitration years after this season.
I wouldn’t give him away for free, but I could see some fit there. Plus, who wouldn’t want a guy that can do this
mlb.com/mariners/video/michael-kopech-in-play-run-…
As a White Sox fan, the White Sox would probably better off trading Robert during the Winter Meetings than settle for a middle infielder with very limited upside. At least in the Winter Meetings, 2025 draft picks would be eligible to acquire via trade.
The White Sox have plenty of guys capable of playing second base which Acuna appears to profile best; on the major league roster alone, there’s Lenyn Sosa (good power but weak defensively), Chase Meidroth, and Brooks Baldwin are viable options with guys like Jacob Gonzalez, William Bergolla, Sam Antonacci and the offensively-challenged Jacob Amaya in the upper levels of the farm system.
If the White Sox must trade Robert, they need to focus on acquiring outfield talent — the only significant upper-level prospects with any kind of power profile are Braden Montgomery (who I envision on the 2027 roster) and perhaps Will Robertson. Otherwise, they’re Quadruple-A guys (i.e. Corey Julks, Dominic Fletcher or Andre Lipcius) or similar 4th outfield types like Rikuu Nishida (who I like better than Acuna anyway) or Dru Baker who don’t possess any power. Obviously, pitchers could be of interest as well but low-cost pitching is coveted by nearly all major-league teams.
If LRJ doesn’t pick up his production over the next two months, what leverage do the White Sox have with his $20M ’26 guaranteed salary? Every other org will be aware that they don’t want to carry his salary.
If the White Sox fail to trade Luis Robert Jr. by the Thursday trade deadline they will likely pick up his first club option for 2026. They have minimal salary commitments on their books. Additionally, White Sox minority owner and future majority owner Justin Ishbia will begin infusing extra capital into the team beginning this offseason to cover any payroll increases. 🙂
The “Ishbia infusion” looks like it is earmarked to pay down debt and other operating expenses.
To trade Roberts during the off season, they would have to pick up the $20MM option. That’s not going to happen, and every GM knows it. LRJ is a rental.
White Sox have a promising selection of young infielders already. They need the next generation of outfielders.
I’d agree that the Sox should be looking for an outfielder.
With the way Mauricio and Marte are playing, Robert doesn’t seem like a good fit with the Mets.
Pass
Acuña is worthless..5’8 light hitting infielders are a dime a dozen and all sitting in AAA.
Robert-flash in the pan and he’s checked out and expensive and always ailing.
Do it. Acuna will never be anything more than a utility player.
seems like a fair trade to me. I’d do it. My guess is that Sox can do better. Robert has more upside.
He had upside 7 yrs ago, do u follow baseball?
Robert Jr. will just turn 28 years old this coming Sunday. He was an absolute stud just two seasons ago in 2023. He’s also put up elite postseason numbers in his two playoff series appearances earlier in his career when the White Sox were actually playing winning baseball before the Rick Hahn/Kenny Williams rebuild derailed.
The Mets’ supposed pursuit of Luis Robert makes zero sense. At this point, Robert is basically Jose Siri at 15 times the price. Why would they give up anything for him, let alone Vientos or even Acuna?
Luckily, I think David Stearns is a little smarter than the pundits proposing these trades.
Starryl: Once again, I have to look at what Vaughn and Sheets are doing since they left the Sox. It shows what a terrible coaching staff the Sox have.
Hes hitting .206 lmao what am i missing?
You’re missing his .777 OPS over the past two months.
What you’re missing is his dramatic platoon splits.
.179/.251/.278 against RHP
.288/.416/.562 against LHP
The Mets hit righties fine. They can’t hit lefties to save their lives. The Mets give up 100 points of OPS when they face lefties (.759 to .659).
He’s good defensively, good on the basepaths, and punishes lefties. A good roster in New York can shield him from righties more than the bad roster in Chicago can.
He gets hurt and doesn’t play most of the time; sorry but that is the only stat that interests me. Please Mets don’t do it!
These past 2 months stuff; that’s why they call it an average; not picking a small sample size.
League has caught up to him as far as pitching to him; past is the past for a reason.
Lefties haven’t caught up to him at all. He murders lefties
#watereddownmarket
I wouldn’t trade Acuna for Robert even if the White Sox paid the entirety of Robert’s contract
Im a tiger fan i remember when prospect wise the playoff white sox looked like a scary team for yrs to come headlining luis robert until it all took a tony larussa dump 😭
Tommy: Dead on!
Since 2024 Luis Robert has had no legitimate hitter to bat behind him in a lineup no protection what so ever. His best year 2023 came at the same time that both Vaughn and Jimenez had great years batting behind him. You put him in front of Soto and Alonso and he’d see more fastballs or balls in the zone. The guy at the least gives you gold glove CF and will end up stealing more than 40 bases this year. Trade redundant prospects that are blocked on the MLB roster maybe add one of the relief pitchers to the deal. If it works out he replaces Marte in “26 for about the same salary. I just think Robert being surrounded by Lindor and Soto as players would bring out his potential.
He can’t hit, protection in a lineup has been debunked a million times. Hes not gonna go from a bad hitter to a good one because he’s in a better lineup
Its a dilemma for me, Brooks Baldwin is a similar player as Acuna, glove first light hitting utility players with some speed. Id say Acuna, mostly on his pedigree has a higher upside, I really like Acuna as a prospect and I mean you have to take into consideration that his brother is Ronald Acuna.
Brooks is a better fit for the team moving forward, you lose one problem and potentially get another with a Acuna. Team likes Brooks, he is a good clubhouse guy, gets along well with Meidroth and Montgomery. I’d say pass on Acuna.
But Acuna has a lot of name recognition, he could be an interesting part of a three team trade, or could be flipped if it doesnt work out.
What’s the fascination with Robert? He can’t hit and he can’t get on base.
Not to mention his recent 2 games on the bench because of a leg injury, and his history of being on the IL.
How about Drew Gilbert and Ryan Clifford for Robert and throw in some cash for a lower minor pitcher? Acuna seems to be a similar player to Brooks Baldwin at best.
Lol, hard pass! Roberts Jr was a DFA candidate most of the year. The league knows CWS won’t risk picking up his $20m and then try to trade him. Acuna Jr is a utility guy, nothing wrong with that. Gilbert alone is an overpay, let alone adding Clifford.
Sox are reportedly will to add some cash to increase Robert’s value.
How about you live with your player, and do the 2 mil buyout at the end of the season?
Of course they have. It’s like the White Sox are allergic to guys who can actually hit the ball over the fence with any regularity.
Mr. Reinsdorf please sell the team. Terrible brand of baseball from ownership to low minors,ask the Southside. No hustle.bad body language, overrated as a trade candidate and ballplayer.
Vientos & acuna > luis is totally reasonable
Mets keep all prospect talent intact
And acquire W now player
A win now player, huh? How’s that working out for the White Sox? Hard pass.
The guy can’t stay on the field period; what part of that doesn’t anyone get!
He is magically going to get healthy on the Mets because of the lineup.
He steals one base and or runs down one fly ball and is out for several months; keep him.
As stated correctly before protection is a myth,
You either can hit and know the strike zone, or you can’t; where does it say you have to swing at a pitch because no one is behind you?
Please Mets, run hard and run fast!
Mets fans crack me up…Robert has more stolen bases than anyone on your team and is gold glove CF..I’m talking about picking him up for a mid-range redundant prospect, but your convinced Taylor’s .260 OBP or running the 5’8 former infielder Acuna will be enough to do the job.