The season has gone far from the way fans expected for the New York Mets.
They have one of the worst records in the National League and have fired their manager. They have plenty of rentals other teams could be interested in at the deadline, but also have some controllable players they are reportedly making available. According to SNY's Chelsea Janes, only Carson Benge, A.J. Ewing, Christian Scott, Nolan McLean and Juan Soto are unavailable in trade talks for the Mets. Notably, Francisco Lindor is not on that list.
Trading Lindor was always going to be difficult, but after Joel Sherman's latest report, it will be nearly impossible. Sherman is reporting that the Mets do not plan to eat any money in trades at this year's deadline. That means that any team that wants Lindor will have to take on the entire contract.
There are a couple of reasons the Mets could be taking this approach. For one, whispers of a salary cap may have them rethinking how they spend. Second, they may not be so concerned with getting massive prospect return for some of their stars, and simply want to start fresh with Soto and the young stars they have.
Regardless, it makes the trade deadline a little more complicated for the Mets. Luke Weaver, Freddy Peralta, Clay Holmes, Brooks Raley and A.J. Minter could all be on the move in the next couple of weeks. Pitchers are always a hot commodity at the trade deadline, and the Mets have plenty of pitching up for grabs.