Mets: 3 trade deadline targets from potential surprise sellers

3) Mets trade target on a potential surprise seller: Johnny Cueto

Johnny Cueto is a teammate of one of the guys mentioned above. If you guessed he’s still with the Giants, you probably aren’t alone. He’s actually with the White Sox and producing well for them. However, his time in Chicago could be short-lived. The White Sox, as you already know, are slipping in the standings and well behind several teams.

Cueto could be a sneaky-good addition to the Mets roster. Now 3-4 with a 2.91 ERA after 68 innings of work, the White Sox must feel like they won the lottery by giving him a chance in the twilight of his career. There isn’t a victory parade, though. Too much else has gone wrong for them this season.

The White Sox aren’t a team ready to go into a major selloff because of how high their expectations were heading into this season. Cueto and Abreu are two of the more prominent free agents they have coming off the books this winter. Cueto could give the Mets even more starting pitcher depth. He’d be an insurance policy just in case Jacob deGrom’s rehab doesn’t go so well or they end up losing someone else.

Mets fans will remember Cueto most from beating them in Game 2 of the 2015 World Series against, oddly enough, Jacob deGrom. He threw a complete game for the Kansas City Royals and allowed only a single earned run in the 7-1 victory. That version of Cueto is long gone. If the Mets were to acquire him this year, it would still be a nice addition and someone with experience they can use both in the rotation and maybe even in the bullpen.