4 stats that prove the Mets won the trade deadline

Somewhere out there, Jeff Passan finally got a good night's sleep. MLB's top insider was even busier than usual, because this MLB trade deadline was out of control, with a whole host of contenders engaging in an epic arms race in pursuit of winning the 2025 World Series. Several teams made themselves undeniably better, but when the smoke cleared, it was the New York Mets who were the biggest winners.

That's not to say that there wasn't some stiff competition for the king of the deadline, and it also doesn't mean that you can now pencil the Amazins into the World Series. The National League playoffs are going to be a bloodbath, with the Phillies, Brewers, Cubs, Dodgers and Padres also looking like legit contenders.

The Mets had clear needs in the bullpen and in center field, and they went out and addressed them in a big way. Many speculated that they would also try to land a high-end starter, but the fact that they didn't isn't the end of the world, because now one or both of Brandon Sproat and Nolan McLean, two of the top pitching prospects in the organization, could see major league action sooner rather than later.

Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns added four players for the stretch run, and so for that reason, I have four stats that prove that nobody had a better trade deadline. Here we go.

1. Ryan Helsley and Tyler Rogers have been lights out against National League playoff contenders

The Mets desperately needed bullpen help for two reasons. First is that their starters are completely incapable of going deep into games. Other than David Peterson, I can't remember the last time a Mets pitcher made it into the seventh inning of a game. Most times, they don't even get to the sixth.

The other reason is that although the Mets have one of the best closers in baseball in Edwin Diaz, and a few very good pieces like Reed Garrett and Brooks Raley, the bottom of the depth chart was seriously lacking. There's been some real roster churn with players being signed, released and sent down to AAA, so that it's honestly been difficult to keep up with who's in the bullpen at any given moment.

That won't be a problem any longer, because the Mets managed to snag two of the top relievers in the National League. More importantly, both Ryan Helsley and Tyler Rogers have been dominant against the teams that the Mets will likely have to get through to win a pennant.

That's the kind of numbers you want to see. Helsley in particular has been ridiculous against the Phillies, holding their entire roster to a combined average of .119 and an OPS of .379. That's like if you let a toddler bat against the computer on MLB The Show on GOAT difficulty.

As an added bonus, Helsley and Rogers exist at opposite extremes in terms of arm angle. Rogers, with his submarine stye, has the lowest arm angle of any righty in the league, while Helsley's over-the-top throwing motion is the fifth-most upright. Stacking them one after another will keep opposing lineups so off-balance that I'm giggling to myself just thinking about it.

2. Lefties are hitting only .138 against Gregory Soto this year

The Mets didn't wait until deadline day to get the party started, as they acquired lefty reliever Gregory Soto from the Orioles on July 25. Soto is a two-time All-Star whose fastball can crack 100 mph, but the reason he'll be so valuable in New York is his effectiveness against fellow lefties.

Before this deal, Raley was the only lefty the Mets could count on, and he hasn't even pitched five innings since returning from Tommy John surgery. Soto is exactly the kind of guy the Mets needed, because there are so many dangerous left-handed bats standing between them and their first pennant since 2015.

Just off the top of my head, there's Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman on the Dodgers, Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber on the Phillies, Kyle Tucker and Pete Crow-Armstrong on the Cubs, Jackson Merrill and Luis Arraez on the Padres and Christian Yelich on the Brewers. There are going to be a lot of high-leverage situations against All-Star-caliber lefties, and now Carlos Mendoza knows that he has more than just Raley to get them out.

3. Cedric Mullins has a .289 average and .886 OPS against lefties this year

The Mets were linked to Luis Robert of the White Sox for much of the deadline, but in the end they ended up with the Orioles' Cedric Mullins instead. Robert has a higher ceiling and would probably benefit from a change of scenery, but Mullins is still a clear upgrade in center over Tyrone Taylor.

The Mets need more production from the bottom half of their lineup, and they need someone who can hit lefties, because as a team they're hitting just .226 in that department. Mullins fills that need, and he's been hot throughout the month of July, with a .290 average and an .868 OPS.

Mullins has been up and down this year, but he seems to have figured things out at the plate.

I'm a Tyrone Taylor fan. He's got a great glove and he's an excellent locker room guy, but he just doesn't give the Mets much with his bat. Especially on a team that was struggled so often with men in scoring position, that couldn't continue if the Mets were serious about making a run. He'll still be able to come in as a defensive sub and get the occasional start, but this is a clear upgrade no matter how you slice it.

4. The Mets added four serious pieces without giving up a top prospect

We talked about who the Mets got, but just as important to their long-term future is who they did, and who they didn't give up. Jose Butto was the only major leaguer included in any of these trades, and though he's been a valuable long reliever during his four years in Flushing, he hasn't been nearly as reliable this year as he was last year.

Despite landing so many valuable pieces, David Stearns was really able to protect the Mets' top prospects. Not a single top-nine prospect in the organization was dealt away, and though Blade Tidwell and Drew Gilbert both have potential (they were ranked 10th and 12th, respectively), neither had much of a major league path with the Mets.

Clifford is a corner outfielder, and the Mets are set for at least the next five seasons with Brandon Nimmo in left, and for the next million years with Juan Soto in right. Tidwell ranked behind McLean, Sproat and Jonah Tong in the Mets pitching prospect hierarchy.

There were rumors early on deadline day that the White Sox wouldn't give up Robert unless they got Tong in return. If that move had happened, I would not be in good shape right now. Tong has blown away everyone he's faced in AA while drawing favorable comparisons to Tim Lincecum. Thankfully, Stearns didn't blink, and he landed Mullins for a much more reasonable price.

We've seen in recent years how important bullpen usage is in the postseason, and the Mets are following that blueprint to the letter. Though the Padres also upgraded what was already an outstanding pen by adding Mason Miller from the A's, they had to give up No. 3 overall prospect Leodalis De Vries to do it. If Miller helpes deliver a World Series to San Diego it will have been worth it, but that's a steep price to pay for any reliever, even an uber-talented one who is under team control through 2029.

The Mets are in first place in the NL East and very much in the running for the top seed in the playoffs. They're a much better team now than they were last week, and they didn't have to upend their future to do it. That's why they're the biggest winners of the trade deadline.

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