Mets including Mark Vientos in trade discussions

The Mets are clear buyers this summer with a 1.5 game lead over the Phillies for control of the NL East, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible that they would deal from their big league roster. As the club seeks help in multiple areas of it’s roster, Andy Martino of SNY reports that the club has been discussing infielder Mark Vientos with rival clubs ahead of this week’s trade deadline. He adds that teams have inquired after not only Vientos but also fellow infield youngsters Brett Baty and Ronny Mauricio, though Martino notes that teams have come away with the belief that Vientos is the most available of those three names.

It’s a position that would have been unthinkable just a few months ago. The 25-year-old enjoyed a breakout season last year when he slashed .266/.332/.516 with 27 homers and 22 doubles across just 111 games. That seemed to position Vientos as the club’s third baseman of the future in spite of his lackluster work with the glove last season. Unfortunately for the Mets and Vientos, however, things have gone off the rails this year. The Mets were surely hoping that his glove would improve at least somewhat with time, but he’s remained one of the worst defenders in the sport this year. This time, however, his offense isn’t carrying the overall package. Vientos has slashed just .226/.280/.358 (81 wRC+) across 73 games this year amid a power outage that’s seen his barrel rate collapse from 14.1% last year to just 7.3% in 2025.

With Vientos unproductive on both offense and defense, he’s arguably expendable on a club with better options at first base (Pete Alonso) and DH (Starling Marte). Baty, Mauricio, Luisangel Acuna and Jeff McNeil can all hold their own on the infield as well, to say nothing of the anticipated eventual return of Jesse Winker from the injured list, at which point he’ll likely return to sharing time with Marte at DH. All of those options leave Vientos somewhat squeezed out of the mix for playing time, but another club could look at Vientos’s 2024 performance and the fact that he remains under team control through the end of the 2029 season and see an opportunity to buy low on a bat with an All-Star caliber ceiling.

The White Sox, for instance, have interest in Vientos according to a report from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. Nightengale suggests that the Sox would want Vientos in return for center fielder Luis Robert Jr. after months of connections between Robert and the Mets in the rumor mill. Robert’s value is unlikely to be high enough to land Vientos in a one-for-one trade at this point, though speculatively speaking it’s at least possible he could be had if Robert was packaged with pitching help that would help address New York’s other needs.

Chicago is far from the only team that should have interest in Vientos if he’s available, however. The Diamondbacks are primarily targeting young pitching, but Vientos would be an intriguing fit given the recent loss of first baseman Josh Naylor and the club’s impending plans to trade third baseman Eugenio Suarez in the coming days. The Padres are dangling Dylan Cease in hopes of adding a bat or two this summer, and Vientos’s combination of upside and cheap team control could be attractive to a cash-strapped contender. The Rays are always creative and appear to be at least considering dealing incumbent first baseman Yandy Diaz this summer. The Red Sox are in need of first base help and could benefit from another right-handed bat in their lineup.

A handful of those clubs mentioned remain in playoff contention alongside the Mets, but it certainly wouldn’t be the first time a pair of buy-side GMs managed to get creative and work out a trade that benefits both clubs. Vientos should have broad appeal to teams looking for help on the infield corners or at DH regardless of their competitive timeline thanks to his combination of near-term upside and long-term team control. Of course, it’s far from a lock that the Mets will actually move Vientos. New York stands to benefit as much as anyone from the slugger’s upside in 2026 and beyond, particularly in the likely event that Alonso opts out of his contract this winter. Even in 2025, the depth Vientos provides could prove essential in the event of an injury sidelining a player like Marte or any of the club’s infielders. While the slugger isn’t the key cog in the Mets’ lineup he was last year, all the traits that make him an attractive buy-low candidate would make it difficult for the club’s front office to justify selling low on him.