Despite a stacked lineup that includes shortstop Francisco Lindor, first baseman Pete Alonso, and outfielder Juan Soto, the Mets offense has underwhelmed this spring.
New York enters Tuesday ranked in the middle of the pack in runs scored (12th in MLB) and team batting average (.246, 17th), among other metrics.
The Mets also lost slugging third baseman Mark Vientos to a hamstring injury on Monday night, which might mean a spell on the injured list.
With that in mind, New York may be trying to boost its offense ahead of the MLB Trade Deadline on July 31. Tyrone Taylor (a good defensive player) has struggled in centerfield, recording only one home run, nine RBI, and a.238/.2925/.338 slash line in 175 plate appearances across 53 games this season.
Cedric Mullins’ addition would help the Mets team with ‘championship aspirations’. Get ‘That Much Better’.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan’s early “2025 MLB trade deadline preview” was published on Tuesday morning, and it includes the Mets as one of the nine “Acquirers,” indicating that they would be “aggressively pursuing additions” before the end of July.
Passan believes that New York’s primary goal should be to “get Juan Soto really going and run away with the NL East.” Then he claims that Baltimore Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins is the best fit for what the Mets are searching for.
Mullins is now on the 10-day IL with a strained hamstring but could return soon. He is enjoying a solid season with 10 home runs, 31 RBI, and eight steals in 207 plate appearances over 50 games.
“The Mets have the best record in the NL, despite Soto not having his usual year and a patchwork rotation that has managed to be the best in the game. As appealing as it was to trade Gallen to the Mets
Passan added, “Imagine the Philly-area native pitching for New York against the Phillies in the postseason — Mullins represents an even greater upgrade.” “Mullins has been one of the Orioles’ only bright spots this season, and as good as Tyrone Taylor has been in center, Mullins’ hitting is substantially superior, and his glove, while somewhat inferior to Taylor’s, is quite adequate. Let Mullins hit for the first seven innings, then bring Taylor in for defense in the eighth, and a Mets club with championship hopes improves even more.
On Tuesday, Bleacher Report’s Zachary D. Rymer ranked the 2021 AL All-Star and Silver Slugger Award winner as the fourth-most desirable player on his “Trade Deadline Big Board”.
This year, the Mets have been linked to a number of superstar outfielders.
This is not the first time the Mets have been linked to a former All-Star outfielder this season.
With the Chicago White Sox continuing to exhibit symptoms of an impending full rebuild, centerfielder Luis Robert Jr. has been the most talked about player in trade speculations. Chicago has not made the playoffs or had a winning record since 2021, completed last year with an MLB-record 121 defeats to just 41 wins, and is off to an 18-42 start in 2025.
Robert Jr. is only bound with Chicago until 2025, but he has club options for 2026 and 2027. He has been connected to the Mets several times this season.
He made his big-league debut in July of the 2020 COVID-shortened season, and in 202 at-bats over 56 games, he hit 11 home runs, 31 RBI, nine steals, and had a slash line of.233/.302/.436. In his debut season, Robert Jr. won his first and only Gold Glove award and finished second in the American League Rookie of the Year voting to Kyle Lewis.
Injuries limited the 27-year-old to 166 appearances between the 2021 and 2022 seasons, but he broke out in 2023. Robert Jr. completed his fourth season with career highs in Wins Above Replacement (5.0), runs scored (90), hits (144), doubles (36), home runs (38), RBI (80), and total bases (296), among other categories, while winning a Silver Slugger award and All-Star Honour
He played only 100 games in 2024, finishing with 14 home runs, 35 RBI, and a career low. 224/.278/.379 triple slash, but also set a career high with 23 stolen bases. Robert Jr. has followed up his poor 2024 performance with an even poorer 2025, slashing.177/.266/.286, however his counting stats have improved with five home runs and an MLB-leading 21 stolen bases.
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