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MLB trade rumors: 5 players the Mets must acquire

By Joshua Sadlock

Apr 28, 2017; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Atlanta Braves pitcher Bartolo Colon (40) bunts during the third inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 28, 2017; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Atlanta Braves pitcher Bartolo Colon (40) bunts during the third inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports /
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The New York Mets may need to look to the trade market to revamp their roster after injuries and a slow start, but who should they target?

After a 7-3 start to the season, the New York Mets have gone into a swoon, and are 3-11 over their past 14 games. The Mets sit buried in last place in the NL East, and have more players landing on the disabled list by the day. To add insult to injury, ace Noah Syndergaard is on the disabled list for months, not weeks with a torn lat muscle. Syndergaard left his last start after 1.1 innings, and the Mets went on to surrender 23 runs while losing to the first-place Washington Nationals.

It is still early in the year, but the Mets are sinking quickly, and they may not have enough reinforcements coming if another big injury pops up. Trades are still relatively rare — big trades, anyway — at this point of the season, but the Mets may need to look outward to the rest of the league to find a spark while they wait for health. Here are five players they should target.

5. Alcides Escobar

The Mets are set at shortstop with Asdrubal Cabrera. Though he is no longer the rangiest defender or best hitter, he gets the job done most of the time, and will not sink the offense with his bat. Third base, on the other hand, has been a bigger problem for the Mets this season. Jose Reyes has been given every opportunity to lose the job this season, and is batting .170 on the year with an OPS of .563. The Mets must get more out of the hot corner if they are going to keep pace with the Nationals, a team that has made putting up 15 runs look routine.

True third baseman may be difficult to find on the market right now, but Alcides Escobar may be available as the Kansas City Royals continue to scuffle. Escobar is off to an even worse start at the plate than Reyes, but he is younger, in a walk year, and still more dynamic than Reyes at this point of his career. Adding Escobar to the Mets would not be an earth-shattering move, but he would come cheap, and would allow the Mets to keep Amed Rosario in the minor leagues until he is ready.

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