New York Mets could've traded David Wright for Carlos Beltran

What would have been a disaster of a move.

According to Andy Martino of SNY, the New York Mets could have traded third baseman David Wright to the Kansas City Royals for center fielder Carlos Beltran ahead of the 2004 MLB Trade Deadline.

Ex-Mets general manager and current SNY analyst Jim Duquette revealed the story to Martino. Duquette, the Mets' GM at the time, was in the hunt for pitching and offense at that deadline and wanted Beltran in Queens.

“We really felt like we needed pitching before anything else,” Duquette said to Martino.

However, Allard Baird, then-Royals GM, was only willing to give up Beltran to the Mets in exchange for Wright.

“Every time I would ask about Beltran, Allard said, ‘Well, I’ll trade you Beltran, but we want David Wright in return,” Duquette said.

Wright was a 21-year-old top prospect who had just made his MLB debut in July of 2004.

“We were not trading David Wright at all. So, we would hang up the phone. We would call back and say, ‘Hey, any other thoughts about Beltran?’ And he would say, ‘David Wright.’”

The rest is history as the Mets ultimately did not trade Wright, who will now have his No. 5 jersey retired via ceremony by New York on Saturday.

Beltran of course was a part of a three-team trade that sent him to the Houston Astros in 2004. Duquette was replaced by Omar Minaya as Mets' GM following that season. Beltran was signed by Minaya and the Mets in free agency prior to the 2005 season.

Wright and Beltran instead became superstar teammates from 2005-2011. But a trade for each other would've altered Mets history and likely Wright's career.