The New York Mets put together quite an impressive offseason this winter. They began the offseason by bringing in superstar Juan Soto on a contract worth nearly $800 million. Shortly after, they started adding to the starting rotation. New York re-signed Sean Manaea, but the lefty is struggling with an injury right now.
The Mets proceeded to sign Clay Holmes and Frankie Montas, as well. Holmes has looked much better in 2025 than he did last year, partially because of the Mets' decision to move him to a starter and his addition of the new "kick change." Montas is fighting the injury bug as well, and he's not expected to be back on a mound for a significant chunk of time.
Because of these two injuries, the Mets have a very questionable and unstable starting rotation entering the 2025 season. Free agency is quite picked through, so the Mets will likely need to swing a trade if they want to improve the rotation.
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This Mets-Cardinals trade would send a dark horse ace to the Big Apple
The St. Louis Cardinals could be the perfect suitor for the Mets. The Cardinals are reportedly trying to rebuild their roster, which means they could trade away their ace, Sonny Gray.
Gray has been excellent for the last few seasons, so it would be pretty costly for the Mets to acquire him, but it would be much cheaper than acquiring Sandy Alcántara or Dylan Cease.
The Mets would be swapping two of their top 12 prospects for Gray in this hypothetical trade.
McLean, 23, has one of the best sliders in all of minor league baseball. He was incredibly dominant in his first full season of pro ball last year, which leads many to believe he could be fast-tracked to the big leagues. If the righty has a dominant first half of the season, we could see him crack the big leagues by July.
Gilbert, 24, is a former top prospect with all the tools to be successful. He was ranked highly on prospect boards following two great seasons of professional baseball, but a huge step back in 2024 saw him drop to 11th on the Mets' top 30 prospect rankings. The Cardinals would be acquiring him with the hope that a change of scenery could boost him to his full potential.
The Mets would land the starter they need while keeping all the prospects that have a clear path to the big leagues. St. Louis would be dumping some salary and bringing in two very talented prospects to replace Gray. It's a win-win for both teams.