Freddy Peralta remains the Mets' top trade chip
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Freddy Peralta remains the Mets' top trade chip originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Entering the season, the New York Mets thought they would be in a position to buy at the trade deadline. Unfortunately, they're the third-worst team in the National League (34-41) and are dead last in the National League East standings.
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One of the big acquisitions of the Mets' offseason was acquiring Freddy Peralta from the Milwaukee Brewers to lead their starting rotation and possibly start a playoff game for them. With those dreams fading further away and Peralta a pending free agent, the Mets could deal the right-hander once again to help recoup their investment.
Freddy Peralta remains a prime trade chip of the New York Mets
In 15 starts with the Mets, Peralta has been okay, but not the All-Star and top-five Cy Young finisher he was last season, going 5-5 with a 3.90 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. Despite being average, for a contending team, adding a solid No. 3 option and the upside of being a No. 2 would be worth the price to acquire him.
"At 33-41, the Mets entered Thursday trailing the first-place Braves by 13 1/2 games, sitting 5 1/2 games out of the final NL Wild Card spot. New York is likely to wait until the Trade Deadline draws near before selling, but if that time comes, Peralta figures to be the Mets’ most appealing asset. Peralta is 5-5 with a 3.90 ERA in 15 starts this season, but the impending free agent would be an upgrade for nearly every contender’s rotation," wrote Mark Feinsand of MLB.com.
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Feinsand lists the St. Louis Cardinals, the Cleveland Guardians and the Tampa Bay Rays as teams interested in acquiring the 30-year-old. However, two of these three teams, the Cardinals and Guardians, are unlikely to trade for a pending free agent.
Though Peralta would massively upgrade the Cardinals' rotation, if the Cardinals are going to add a high-quality arm, they'll trade for someone like Reid Detmers of the Los Angeles Angels, who comes with team control.
As for the Guardians, they're not a team to make such a big trade, but rather filling their needs with lateral moves.