MLBTR Podcast: The PCA and Sanchez Extensions, And Prospect Promotions And Reassignments
The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.
This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…
- The extension between the Cubs and Pete Crow-Armstrong (recorded prior to the numbers being reported) (2:20)
- The extension between the Phillies and Cristopher Sánchez (7:00)
- The Braves losing Spencer Strider to the injured list (14:00)
- Is there a trend of starting pitcher prospects being used in major league bullpens? (18:15)
- The Nationals optioning Dylan Crews and Harry Ford, with Josiah Gray landing on the 60-day IL (23:35)
- Carson Benge making the Mets‘ Opening Day roster (30:30)
- JJ Wetherholt making the Cardinals‘ Opening Day roster (35:40)
- The Pirates not breaking camp with Konnor Griffin (39:15)
- The Guardians not breaking camp with Travis Bazzana (44:40)
- The Blue Jays starting the season with José Berríos and Trey Yesavage on the injured list (49:20)
- The Marlins optioning Braxton Garrett (55:55)
Check out our past episodes!
- Banged-Up Reds And Braves, Kevin McGonigle, And Spring Breakouts – listen here
- Jesús Luzardo’s Extension, Atlanta’s Depth, And Zack Littell – listen here
- Max Scherzer, The Red Sox’ Lineup, Spring Extension Candidates, And More! – listen here
The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!
Photo courtesy of Kyle Ross, Imagn Images
Carson Benge To Make Mets’ Roster
Outfield prospect Carson Benge is going to break camp with the Mets, reports Mike Puma of The New York Post. He will be the starting right fielder on Opening Day, per Chelsea Janes of SNY. The Mets will need to open a 40-man spot in order to officially select Benge’s contract.
The move is notable but not shocking. During the offseason, president of baseball operations David Stearns consistently said that Benge would have a chance to break camp with the club. The 19th overall pick from 2024, he mashed his way through High-A and Double-A last year.
He seemed to stall out at Triple-A, with a .178/.272/.311 line in 24 games to finish the year, but there were reasons to not worry about that too much. His 18.4% strikeout rate was good and his 8.7% walk rate around average. His .188 batting average on balls in play was tiny. It seemed more like fluky bad luck than a young hitter being overmatched.
The Mets, as mentioned, wanted to leave a path open for him to reach the big leagues. They did bring in some contingency plans. They signed Mike Tauchman to a minor league deal. MJ Melendez got a 40-man spot but still has an option. It felt like the right field job would be Benge’s to lose and he didn’t do anything to lose it. He hit .366/.435/.439 in Grapefruit League action. That line got some help from an unsustainable .469 BABIP but the Mets were trending towards giving Benge the job as long as he didn’t look overwhelmed.
Melendez was optioned to the minors last week. The Mets were perhaps trending towards rostering both Benge and Tauchman, but the latter tore the meniscus in his left knee a few days ago. That only gave Benge a firmer hold on the job.
There’s always risk in handing a job over to a prospect, as even some very talented young players struggle when first called up, but Benge has shown he deserves a shot. Even including his Triple-A swoon, he hit a combined .281/.385/.472 last year for a 150 wRC+. He stole 22 bases. His defensive abilities are considered strong enough for him to be a plus corner outfielder and maybe even a decent center fielder. He’ll begin the season in right but it’s not out of the question that he eventually spends a decent amount of time in the middle spot with center field manned by the oft-injured Luis Robert Jr..
By carrying Benge on the Opening Day roster, the Mets will open up the possibility of the Prospect Promotion Incentive. He’s a consensus top 25 prospect in the league. If he stays in the majors for enough of the campaign to earn a full year of service, he could net the Mets an extra draft pick by winning Rookie of the Year or with a top three finish in MVP voting during his pre-arbitration seasons.
If things don’t go well with Benge, then the Mets will have to turn to some backup plans. Tauchman has an opt-out in his minor league deal but presumably won’t trigger it while hurt, so he’ll be back in the mix whenever he’s healthy again. Melendez will be on optional assignment in Triple-A, alongside Jared Young and Nick Morabito. Brett Baty is going to be in a super utility role now that Bo Bichette and Marcus Semien are at third and second base respectively. Tyrone Taylor will be on the bench as a glove-first fourth outfielder. The Tauchman injury might also allow Vidal Bruján to stick on the bench in a utility role.
Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Mitch Alcala, Imagn Images
Mike Tauchman To Undergo Surgery After Meniscus Tear
Veteran outfielder Mike Tauchman has suffered a meniscus tear, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post. The injury will require surgery, though a timeline for his return to action has not yet been announced.
It’s devastating news for the 35-year-old, who signed with the Mets this offseason on a minor league deal. Tauchman entered camp as the primary competition for top prospect Carson Benge as the club’s starting right fielder, but played so well in Spring Training (with a .241/.371/.448 slash line across 13 spring games) that he was in serious consideration for a roster spot even as Benge began to prove he was ready for the majors. Now, any hope of contributing to the Mets (or any other club) this year will be put on hold for the foreseeable future. Meniscus surgery can require only a few weeks of recovery for minor procedures, but more significant injuries often take months of recovery and can even be season-ending. With minimal information about the severity of Tauchman’s injury known, it’s possible a more clear timeline for his return won’t be clear until he goes under the knife.
A tenth-round pick by the Rockies back in 2013, Tauchman made it to the majors in 2017 but first received widespread attention as a member of the Yankees during the 2019 season. Tauchman burst onto the scene alongside other little-known players like Gio Urshela and Luke Voit to help carry New York to a 103-win season, though they ultimately lost the ALCS to the Astros in six games. Tauchman’s performance that year was one to remember, as he slashed an incredible .277/.361/.504 with 13 homers and 18 doubles in just 87 games. When Tauchman struggled during the 2020 and ’21 seasons, it was easy to view his strong 2019 campaign as little more than a blip. He departed stateside ball in 2022 to play for the KBO’s Hanhwa Eagles, and that year went well enough for him that the Cubs decided to take a shot on him with a minor league deal.
Tauchman’s tenure with the Cubs revived his MLB career headed into his mid-30s. The then-32-year-old aptly filled in for Cody Bellinger in center field when the star was injured and wound up making himself a key piece of Chicago’s offense for the 2023-24 seasons. He hit .250/.360/.372 (109 wRC+) across 217 games on the north side, but saw his role shrink in 2024 with the emergence of star center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and ultimately found himself squeezed off the roster by the addition of Kyle Tucker during the 2024-25 offseason. After being non-tendered by the Cubs, Tauchman headed to the south side to play for the White Sox and managed to continue his resurgence there. While injuries limited Tauchman to just 93 games with the White Sox, he hit an impressive .263/.356/.400 (115 wRC+) and was a surprising non-tender for Chicago this past offseason.
Tauchman seemed to be in good position to impact an outfield-needy club this offseason for a relatively low cost, and while the Mets were the team to take advantage of his availability it seems they won’t be able to benefit from his on-base skills and steady bat for at least the start of the season. With Tauchman sidelined, utility man Vidal Brujan could be the favorite to take the last spot on the Mets’ bench headed into Opening Day while Benge will surely get every opportunity to establish himself in right field for New York.
Mets Option Ronny Mauricio
The Mets announced a series of roster cuts today. Most notably, infielder Ronny Mauricio has been optioned to Triple-A Syracuse. They also optioned right-hander Joey Gerber while non-roster pitchers Brandon Waddell and Mike Baumann were reassigned to minor league camp.
The Mauricio move might be a clue about some other moves the Mets will make to round out their Opening Day roster. Joel Sherman of The New York Post reports that third baseman Bo Bichette will play shortstop tomorrow with the possibility of the Mets beginning the season without a backup shortstop on the bench.
Bichette had been a shortstop for his entire career until recently. He finished the 2025 season on the injured list and missed the beginning of the Blue Jays’ playoff run. The Jays activated him for the World Series even though he clearly wasn’t fully healthy, then had him split his time between second base and designated hitter.
Even before that knee injury, Bichette wasn’t considered a strong defensive shortstop, so a move off the position felt inevitable. The Mets signed him this winter to get his bat in the lineup, even though they already had Francisco Lindor and Marcus Semien as their middle infield tandem. Bichette is going to be the regular third baseman but could perhaps serve as the de facto backup shortstop. Lindor is recovering from hamate surgery but is expected to be ready for the Opening Day roster.
Perhaps the Mauricio demotion is a sign that the Mets are indeed comfortable with that arrangement. The domino effect of that stance is that they could be able to promote prospect Carson Benge and also keep Mike Tauchman.
The Mets seem to have three of four bench spots locked up. Backup catcher Luis Torrens will have one. Corner infielder Mark Vientos should have another. Tyrone Taylor projects as the fourth outfielder. All three of those guys are out of options. Mauricio made sense as the fourth guy on the bench but he’s now out.
All offseason, president of baseball operations David Stearns has said that Benge would have a chance to make the team. As a safety net, they signed Tauchman to a minor league deal and MJ Melendez on a split deal. Melendez has an option and was sent down earlier this week. Benge has done his part to earn a spot, having put up a .406/.472/.500 line this spring. Tauchman has been making the team’s decision tough, putting up a .280/.419/.520 line.
Tauchman can opt out of his deal on March 25th if he’s not on the roster. Given his track record, he would likely trigger that clause and find a job elsewhere. If the Mets want to keep him around, then going with this shortstop plan would be a way to do that. Simultaneously, they could give Benge the regular right field job on Opening Day, keeping the possibility of the Prospect Promotion Incentive on the table.
If that’s the route they go, that could have impacts on others. Utility player Vidal Bruján is on the roster but out of options. The Mets could give him the final bench spot now that Mauricio has been sent down but that would mean letting Tauchman slip away. It’s possible Bruján gets nudged off the roster in the coming days.
As for Mauricio, he was once a notable prospect but his progression has been slowed a bit. He missed the entire 2024 season due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. He was back on the field in 2025 but was in a bench role for most of the year. He got into 61 big league games and produced a tepid .226/.293/.369 line.
Optioning him to the minors would have the benefit of getting him some regular playing time, something he hasn’t had in a while. However, he has just one option season remaining. If he stays down for at least 20 days, he will be out of options in 2027.
Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Imagn Images
Mike Tauchman Has March 25 Opt-Out In Mets Deal
Outfielder Mike Tauchman is in camp with the Mets on a minor league deal. If the club doesn’t give him a roster spot at the end of camp, he can seek out opportunities elsewhere. Will Sammon of The Athletic reports that Tauchman has a March 25th opt-out in that deal. The Mets start the season on March 26th.
The Mets have two outfield spots spoken for. Juan Soto will be in left field and Luis Robert Jr. in center. The right field job was seemingly left open by design, as the Mets wanted to give prospect Carson Benge a chance to earn a spot. Benge has not yet made his major league debut, so the club needed to have some contingency plans. Tyrone Taylor is on the roster and could step up but he also would be a good fit as a glove-first fourth outfielder. Brett Baty is going to be in a super utility role and will be in the mix as well. Tauchman was brought in to give the Mets another option without taking up a roster spot. MJ Melendez was added to the roster but he has an option remaining and could be sent to Triple-A.
Benge is doing what he can to get the job, with a .367/.406/.433 line in spring so far. That’s held up by an unsustainable .440 batting average on balls in play but it’s encouraging nonetheless. Tauchman is putting up even better numbers. With a .400 BABIP, he has a .333/.481/.619 line in spring action so far.
Sammon floats the idea of both players cracking the roster but also notes it may not be realistic. With Francisco Lindor trending towards being ready on Opening Day, the roster is tight. Backup catcher Luis Torrens will have one of the four bench spots. Taylor and Mark Vientos are out of options and should have two more. The final spot could go to a backup infielder like Ronny Mauricio.
Mauricio does still have an option remaining, so the Mets could send him to Triple-A and add Tauchman to the bench. Doing so would leave them without a bench infielder, so the Mets would have to be comfortable with the versatility of their starters. Second baseman Marcus Semien and third baseman Bo Bichette are both former shortstops, with Bichette being an everyday guy there as recently as last year. Baty can play second and third. Vientos give them some cover at the hot corner. Jorge Polanco is expected to play a lot of first base but he also has recent experience at second and third.
It’s unknown how the Mets feel about that jumble but it’s theoretically possible they could feel comfortable without Mauricio in the mix. If he were sent to Triple-A, he could get some regular playing time, which he hasn’t had for a while. He missed 2024 due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. Last year, he was still rehabbing that knee to start the year and then was mostly kept in a bench role once he was healthy. Vidal Bruján is only on the roster and out of options but the Mets may try to get him through waivers.
If the Mets don’t find a spot for Tauchman, he could find one somewhere else. He’s not a star but has been pretty solid for the past three years. Since the start of 2023, he has a combined .255/.359/.381 line, which translates to a 111 wRC+. He doesn’t have huge power but he has drawn walks at a strong 13% clip, while keeping his strikeouts down to a 21.3% clip. His defensive grades have been strong as well. FanGraphs credited him with 4.1 wins above replacement in 310 games over that span.
Despite the solid production, teams have somewhat surprisingly been averse to investing in him. The Cubs non-tendered him after 2024 despite a fairly modest $2.9MM projected salary from MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. He spent 2025 with the White Sox and had another decent campaign but he was once again non-tendered, with Swartz projecting a $3.4MM salary.
Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Imagn Images
Poll: Will Carson Benge Break Camp With The Mets?
The Mets overhauled their offense this past winter, and most of the players they shipped out have been swapped out for new faces. They weren’t traded for one another, but Marcus Semien is taking Jeff McNeil‘s spot at second base. Pete Alonso is an Oriole, and Jorge Polanco will take up plenty of the first base reps in his absence (although new third baseman Bo Bichette is arguably more of a direct replacement for Alonso’s big right-handed bat). One player who wasn’t directly replaced, however, is left fielder Brandon Nimmo.
After Nimmo was dealt to the Rangers to land Semien, the Mets seemed like the most logical landing spot for star outfielder Kyle Tucker. The Mets pursued him, but Tucker ended up going to the Dodgers. The Mets quickly pivoted to signing Bichette to fill out the middle of their lineup. A trade for Luis Robert Jr. patched up the existing hole the club had in center following Cedric Mullins‘ departure, but that still left a vacancy in an outfield corner. That position has more or less remained unfilled. Mike Tauchman (minor league deal) and MJ Melendez (split big league deal) signed as free agents, but the Mets are planning to give top prospect Carson Benge an opportunity to earn the big league job.
After Tucker and Cody Bellinger came off the market, there weren’t many surefire impact outfielders available. Benge could wind up being more productive than someone like Harrison Bader or Mike Yastrzemski, so it made little sense to block him by signing a player of that caliber to a multi-year deal. Benge is a consensus top-20 prospect in the sport who reached Triple-A near the end of his 2025 campaign. Plenty of other top prospects, including Konnor Griffin of the Pirates, JJ Wetherholt of the Cardinals, Justin Crawford of the Phillies, and Bryce Eldridge of the Giants stand a strong chance of making their organization’s big league roster out of Spring Training despite little to no MLB experience.
Does Benge fall into that category as well? There’s little doubt that the team views him as a long-term option, but he hasn’t exactly forced the issue with his minor league output. Benge played in 24 Triple-A games late last year but slashed only .178/.272/.311. It’s a sample of just 103 plate appearances, of course, and his work at both High-A (.302/.417/.480 in 271 plate appearances) and Double-A (.317/.407/.571 in 145 plate appearances) earlier in the year showed how electric his bat could be. Benge is out to a 4-for-14 start this spring.
There’s some competition in camp. The aforementioned Melendez never found his footing in the majors with Kansas City but long ranked as a top prospect. He’s a career .257/.340/.496 hitter with 35 home runs in 173 Triple-A games. He’s homered twice and added a double in 11 spring plate appearances.
Tauchman, a 35-year-old veteran, provides a low-cost alternative with a steady big league track record. He split time between right field and DH for the White Sox last year after spending two seasons as a part-time outfielder for the Cubs. Over the past three seasons, he’s slashed .255/.359/.381 with a wRC+ of 111, balancing a 21.3% strikeout rate against a strong 13.0% walk rate. Tauchman’s first nine plate appearances this spring have produced a double and a homer.
We’re still about three weeks out from Opening Day, which provides Benge with plenty of time to show himself to be MLB capable, or for Tauchman to cool off. There are plenty of aspects to consider with the Benge decision. Sending him to Triple-A could allow him more seasoning after struggling there late last year and could buy the Mets an extra year of club control. Breaking camp with Benge on the roster could open the Mets up to some future draft considerations via MLB’s prospect promotion incentives.
What do MLBTR readers think? Will the Mets commit to Benge as their opening day right fielder, or will they go for another option like Tauchman or Melendez? Have your say in the poll below:
Who will start in right field for the Mets on Opening Day 2026?
Mets Notes: Peralta, Senga, Benge
The Mets acquired right-hander Freddy Peralta from the Brewers earlier this week, which led to immediate speculation about his new club potentially pursuing an extension. That probably won’t happen right away, however. Tim Britton and Will Sammon of The Athletic reported earlier this week that the club plans to give Peralta some time to get comfortable with his new club. President of baseball operations David Stearns later addressed the media via videoconference and his comments matched that reporting.
“I’m not going to speculate on that Day 1 here,” Stearns said of the extension possibility, per Jorge Castillo of ESPN. “We’ll let Freddy get acclimated to the organization. And, you know, any conversations that we may have or have in the future I think we’re going to do our best to keep private and not talk about publicly.”
The reason Peralta was traded away from Milwaukee is that the Brewers generally don’t spend at a level to keep their best players. Guys like Josh Hader, Corbin Burnes and Devin Williams have all been traded in recent years as they reached free agency. Peralta ended up going down the same road but his new club has far deeper pockets than his previous team.
Stearns is very familiar with Peralta and is clearly fond of him. He already signed him to an extension once, when both were with the Brewers back in 2020. This week, Stearns surrendered a couple of notable prospects by sending Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat to Milwaukee in order to reunite with Peralta and acquire Tobias Myers.
Now that Stearns has access to more financial resources, he would presumably love to get Peralta to sign on the dotted line again. Based on this week’s scuttlebutt, it seems there won’t be a rush to get that done. Spring training is a common time for extension talks to take place, so maybe more news will trickle out in the next couple of months. In-season extensions are rare but not totally unprecedented. If Peralta gets to the end of 2026 healthy and without a deal in place, he would be a lock to receive and reject a qualifying offer on his way to free agency.
Stearns also addressed a couple of other players on the roster in a sit-down with team reporter Andy Martino. In that interview, Stearns says that outfield prospect Carson Benge still has a chance to break camp with the team even after the Luis Robert Jr. acquisition and that Kodai Senga is expected to be in the rotation.
Back in November, Stearns said that Benge would have a chance to make the team. Not long after making those statements, the Mets opened up a big hole in their outfield by trading away Brandon Nimmo for second baseman Marcus Semien. They then made a spirited effort to sign Kyle Tucker, offering him a four-year deal with a heavy average annual value, but he accepted a similar offer from the Dodgers. The Mets then pivoted and acquired Robert from the White Sox via trade.
After the shuffle, there’s still a path for Benge. The Mets currently project to have Juan Soto in right and Robert in center. At the moment, Benge would seemingly be battling with Tyrone Taylor for the job in left. Taylor is a light hitter but a strong defender, so he would ideally be pushed into a fourth outfielder role by Benge taking the left field job. And given Robert’s history, there’s a decent chance of Taylor ending up getting regular playing time in center as well.
Benge has no major league experience yet and isn’t on the 40-man roster. His Triple-A work is also short and unimpressive, though he was perhaps unlucky there. He began last year at High-A and tore through that level as well as Double-A, slashing a combined .308/.413/.513 for a 174 wRC+ at those two stops while playing all three outfield positions. He finished his 2025 with a .178/.272/.311 slash at Triple-A, though that was in a tiny sample of 103 plate appearances, during which he had a .188 batting average on balls in play.
The Mets are showing a good amount of faith in Benge by leaving a door open for him, even after he put up those rough numbers in Triple-A. If he doesn’t perform in the spring, they have a few fallback options in addition to Taylor. Brett Baty no longer has a position after the Bo Bichette signing and could end up out in left field. Vidal Bruján and Jared Young are infielder/outfielders on the roster. Cristian Pache and Ji Hwan Bae are non-roster options. The Mets may add to that group but it may be more depth additions if they want Benge to still have a path.
As for Senga, he looked dominant in 2023 when he posted a 2.98 earned run average but hasn’t been as much of a sure thing since then. He missed most of 2024 due to injury. Last year, he struggled enough to get optioned to the minors in September. He then popped up in some trade rumors this offseason but is still on the roster. Assuming Stearns is being forthright in his recent comments, Senga will have a rotation job when the season begins.
As of now, the rotation candidates include Peralta, Nolan McLean, David Peterson, Clay Holmes, Sean Manaea and Senga. McLean still has options but it would be quite surprising if the Mets sent him down, given how he dominated in his first eight big league starts. If everyone stays healthy, then the Mets may need to run a six-man rotation or bump someone to the bullpen.
Holmes was a reliever prior to last year and could return to that role but he had a pretty good season as a starter, posting a 3.53 ERA. Manaea and Peterson have occasionally been bumped to long relief roles and could perhaps do so again. A six-man rotation would keep all the starters a bit more fresh but would leave the Mets with a seven-man bullpen, given the 13-pitcher roster limit.
This would only really be an issue for as long as everyone is healthy, which doesn’t happen very often in today’s game. If multiple injuries arise, Myers, Jonah Tong, Christian Scott and others are on the roster and should be ready to step up.
Photo courtesy of Michael McLoone, Imagn Images
Mets’ Trade Talks With Padres Involve Nick Pivetta, Ramon Laureano, Mason Miller
The Mets and Padres have been discussing the possibility of a trade that would send established talent to New York while San Diego obtained MLB-ready younger talent and some salary relief. According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, Dennis Lin, and Will Sammon, right-hander Nick Pivetta, outfielder Ramon Laureano, and star relievers Mason Miller, Adrian Morejon and Jeremiah Estrada are players of interest for New York. The Padres have shown interest in the Mets’ “young major leaguers and all of their top prospects, both pitchers and position players,” including Nolan McLean, Brandon Sproat, and Jonah Tong.
The Athletic’s reporters made a point of noting that Francisco Lindor, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jake Cronenworth weren’t brought up in these negotiations. This only somewhat lessens the blockbuster potential here given all of the high-profile names already under discussion, though it is also possible that the talks remain somewhat exploratory in nature. As Rosenthal/Lin/Sammon note, San Diego president of baseball operations A.J. Preller is always “weighing a dizzying number of possible moves and contingency plans,” and Mets PBO David Stearns is likewise no stranger to major trade concepts.
Pivetta’s name surfaced in trade rumors earlier this week, and Preller recently downplayed the idea that the Padres would trade any of their top bullpen arms. San Diego had an elite relief corps in 2025, but one major name from that group is already gone since closer Robert Suarez left for the Braves in free agency. The depleted nature of the Friars’ rotation also puts more pressure on the bullpen to pick up more of the run-prevention slack, and by that same token, makes it seemingly less likely that the Padres would trade Pivetta and further diminish the starting staff.
That said, Pivetta can opt out of his contract following the 2026 season. The backloaded four-year, $55MM contract Pivetta signed last season still has $51MM remaining, which breaks down as $19MM in 2026, a $14MM player option for 2027, and an $18MM player option for 2028 if Pivetta chooses to remain in San Diego next winter. The 2027 player option turns into a club option in the event of a long-term injury, but if Pivetta has the same kind of healthy and very effective season that he posted in 2025, he’ll surely trigger his opt-out.
If Preller could turn Pivetta into multiple controllable players who can still help the Padres win in 2026, that would be quite a way of threading the needle for the long-time executive. The Mets wouldn’t have much interest in giving up one of their top young talents for what might well be just one year of Pivetta’s services, and McLean might not be available at any price — the Athletic trio write that “McLean is thought to be untouchable, or close to it.” The New York Post’s Jon Heyman adds that outfield prospect Carson Benge is also considered to be virtually unavailable in trade talks.
By comparison, the likes of Tong, Sproat, and Jett Williams may be more available, though Stearns has been naturally hesitant about trading away any top minor leaguers. A trade package of Pivetta, Laureano as a short-term outfield add for 2026, and a reliever with four seasons of control like Miller or Estrada might well convince Stearns to part ways with some premium prospect talent, but on the other hand, that would be a lot for the Padres to move in a single trade.
The Athletic’s writers note that the Padres might get a greater overall return by sending Pivetta, Laureano, etc. elsewhere in individual deals, so it would take a gigantic trade package for the club to include multiple trade chips into a single swap. For Miller in particular, San Diego would want a ton back, given how much the Padres had to give up to land the closer from the A’s just last July.
Getting Pivetta’s salary off the books is one way for the Padres to shake up the roster given the team’s limited payroll flexibility, while short-term commitments to Pivetta and Laureano probably hold more appeal to Stearns than signing free agents to longer-term contracts. The sky is the limit when two creative executives like Preller and Stearns are cooking up trade scenarios, so this is certainly a situation worth monitoring as the offseason progresses.
Mets Interested In Cody Bellinger
The Mets have interest in free agent Cody Bellinger, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. Heyman also downplays the possibility of the Dodgers making a strong run at free agent Edwin Díaz, which he suggests could be good for the Mets.
Bellinger would fit well with the Mets, given the current roster makeup. Center field was a big hole in 2025. Jose Siri spent most of the season on the injured list. He was outrighted off the roster in September and later became a free agent. Tyrone Taylor‘s performance was lacking. The club tried to address the situation by acquiring Cedric Mullins at the deadline but he struggled to the end of the season and then became a free agent.
There is the possibility of an internal solution to the problem. Taylor is still on the roster. President of baseball operations David Stearns also tells Joel Sherman of The New York Post that Carson Benge will have a chance to make the team out of camp next year.
Benge was the club’s first-round pick, taken 19th overall, in the 2024 draft. In 2025, he hit his way through High-A and Double-A. In 416 plate appearances across those two levels, he drew a walk in 14.2% of them while only striking out at a 17.5% clip. He produced a .308/.413/.513 line and 174 wRC+. He got bumped up to Triple-A in mid-August. He slashed just .178/.272/.311 at that level but in a tiny sample of 103 plate appearances with a .188 batting average on balls in play.
Ideally, he would have some Triple-A success before cracking the majors but it seems the Mets aren’t dimming his stock based on that fluky end to a strong season. He played all three outfield spots but the Mets have Juan Soto and Brandon Nimmo in the corners. If March rolls around and Benge is the best center field option, perhaps he will get the job. They likely can’t bank on that, however. Benge is still fairly inexperienced and won’t be eligible for the Rule 5 draft until after the 2027 season, so they don’t need to put him on the 40-man until he earns it.
Signing Bellinger would give them a strong Plan A. Bellinger hasn’t been an everyday center fielder for a few years but the plan would presumably be for him to move off that position whenever Benge forces the issue. Even if that doesn’t happen by Opening Day 2026, it could happen during the campaign. Bellinger could then move to a corner, with the designated hitter spot used in a rotation between himself, Soto and Nimmo. It’s also possible that Bellinger could end up at first base, depending on what happens with Pete Alonso.
Bellinger is heading to free agency for the third time but he should have far more earning power than in the first two trips. He was non-tendered by the Dodgers after 2022, his second straight dismal season on the heels of a shoulder injury. He secured a one-year, $17.5MM deal with the Cubs and bounced back with a strong season before heading to free agency for a second time. His market wasn’t strong, seemingly due to the memories of his poor 2021 and 2022 seasons still being fresh. He returned to the Cubs on a three-year, $80MM deal with opt-outs after each season.
His 2024 wasn’t quite as strong as his 2023 campaign, so he decided to skip his first opt-out chance. He was traded to the Yankees and then had a really strong performance in 2025. He hit 29 home runs, slashed .272/.334/.480 for a 125 wRC+ and got strong grades for his glovework, playing all three outfield spots and a bit of first. There were some flags under there, as he seemingly benefited from the short porch at Yankee Stadium. He had a 152 wRC+ at home and 97 on the road. Still, he made the easy decision to walk away from his $25MM salary in 2026, taking the $5MM buyout instead.
MLBTR predicted Bellinger to secure a five-year, $140MM deal this time. The Mets are one of the top-spending clubs in the league and could certainly make that happen if they wanted to, though Bellinger will have interest elsewhere, including from the Yankees.
At the end of the season, Stearns spoke of a desire to improve the Mets’ run prevention, per Tim Britton of The Athletic. Perhaps that would suggest Bellinger would be a better fit than bringing back Alonso, as the Polar Bear is not a great defender. Rostering both is theoretically possible but a bit clunky, as it closes off the possibility of Bellinger moving to first once Benge takes over center.
Turning to Díaz, he is the top reliever available this winter. The last time he was headed to free agency, the Mets signed him before he got there. It was a five-year, $102MM pact with an opt-out after three seasons. A major knee injury wiped out 2023 for Díaz but he bounced back in the two subsequent seasons. He just posted a 1.63 earned run average. His 38% strikeout rate wasn’t quite as gaudy as his 50% mark in 2022 but it was still very good. He triggered his opt out and is now a free agent for the first time.
Any club would be interested in adding him but he’s likely going to command another hefty deal. That puts clubs like the Dodgers in play, though Heyman’s suggestion that they aren’t likely to be aggressive with Díaz could help the Mets. That doesn’t mean he will be cheap, however. Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic reports that Díaz is looking to get roughly the same deal he got last time.
That’s a bit of a tall ask. Díaz is still quite good but he’s turning 32 in March. As mentioned, his strikeout rate is still very strong but not quite as insane as it was a few years ago. MLBTR predicted him for $82MM over four years this time, roughly the same average annual value as his last deal but on a shorter term since he’s now three years older. Time will tell if he can match his previous pact but it should be a notable deal either way.
The Mets issued him a qualifying offer, which he will decline. The Mets presumably want to bring Díaz back but Stearns has generally opted for shorter-term commitments to pitchers since he took over the front office. If he lets Díaz sign elsewhere, it would hurt the bullpen but the Mets would receive a compensatory draft pick.
Photo courtesy of Kevin Sousa, Imagn Images
Mets Notes: Tong, Duran, Siri
There is some feeling within the Mets organization that right-handed pitching prospect Jonah Tong could make his MLB debut before the 2025 season is up, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports. Tong only just made his debut with Triple-A Syracuse on August 16 and hadn’t been projected as “a consideration for the Major League roster this year,” Puma writes, but “that stance has changed in recent days.”
The shift is due to both the Mets’ rotation needs, and Tong’s continued excellence in his third pro season. A seventh-round pick for New York in the 2022 draft, Tong has emerged as a top-100 prospect — Baseball America has the right-hander 42nd on their midseason top 100 list, and MLB Pipeline has Tong in their 44nd spot. It is easy to see why, as Tong has an absurd 1.43 ERA and 40.5% strikeout rate over 113 2/3 combined innings at the Double-A and Triple-A levels in 2025. That includes 11 2/3 scoreless innings during his brief time in Syracuse.
Naturally there’s some risk in bringing the 22-year-old up to the Show in such relatively rapid fashion, and Tong’s 10.6% walk rate stands out as a potential weakness to be exploited by big league hitters. That said, Tong’s unusual delivery could also leave some hitters baffled, not to mention his plus fastball that has a ton of break if relatively little velocity (in the 91-94mph range).
Promoting Tong doesn’t necessarily mean he’d be in the majors for the rest of the season, of course, as the Mets could potentially use him for a spot start during a crowded stretch of the schedule. New York is six games into a stretch of 26 games in 27 days, with September 4 as the only off-day during that stretch. This puts even more pressure on a rotation that hasn’t provided much in the way of length or results lately, and the Mets already turned to another rookie in Nolan McLean to take Frankie Montas‘ rotation spot earlier this month.
At this point it wouldn’t be a shock to see McLean, Tong, and another top prospect in Brandon Sproat all get onto the mound before the Mets’ season is over. This need for help from the farm (in addition to any club’s natural reticence about moving top prospects) may have been a reason why the Amazins didn’t make much progress in trade talks with the Twins about Jhoan Duran.
The Mets were loosely linked to Duran’s market just prior to the trade deadline, and the New York Post’s Jon Heyman reported that the Mets weren’t willing to move any of McLean, Tong, Sproat, Jett Williams, or Carson Benge. This quintet are the consensus top prospects within New York’s farm system, and Baseball America has all five players within their league-wide top-100 prospects list. Minnesota was known to be seeking at least one top-100 type for Duran’s services, and found such an offer from another NL East club in the Phillies, who landed Duran for Eduardo Tait and Mick Abel.
Duran has looked excellent in Philadelphia, while the Mets have gotten mixed result from their deadline bullpen acquisitions. Tyler Rogers and Gregory Soto have both pitched well since coming to Queens, but Ryan Helsley has struggled badly. Shaky pitching on both the bullpen and rotation has contributed to the Mets’ 7-13 record in August, and the Phillies have pulled out to a six-game lead over New York in the NL East.
In other Mets news, manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters (including MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo) on Wednesday that Jose Siri is expected to start a minor league rehab assignment this week. Siri fractured his left tibia after fouling a ball off his leg back in April, and what was expected to be an absence of 8-10 weeks has now lasted well over four months. Since he played in only 10 games with the Mets before the injury, Siri figures to need at least a week of minor league action to get fully ramped up for a return to the active roster.
This makes him a candidate for an IL activation once rosters expand on September 1, though Siri will be returning to a more crowded outfield picture. New York went into the season planning to use Siri and Tyrone Taylor in a center field timeshare, but the deadline acquisition of Cedric Mullins has now created a more traditional lefty-righty platoon up the middle with Taylor. A player with Siri’s elite glove always has value on a roster, of course, so the Mets could use him as something of a defensive specialist if nothing else.