Mets fill outfield need with former villain in trade with Nationals
By Scott Rogust
The 2024 MLB trade deadline may not be until 6:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 30, but that hasn't stopped teams from working over the weekend. Particularly on Saturday.
The New York Mets have been one of the hottest teams in the majors ever since Grimace threw out the first pitch back on June 12. Entering Saturday, the Mets held the final Wild Card spot in the National League. To keep up, they needed to address areas of need to bolster the roster. Not to mention, they need to contend with the Philadelphia Phillies, who made a huge splash earlier in the day by acquiring Los Angeles Angels closer Carlos Estevez.
Well late on Saturday night, team president David Stearns made a trade to help bolster the Mets' outfield. While there was buzz that the Mets were interested in a reunion with Michael Conforto, that's not happening. Instead, Stearns addressed the need by making a call to an NL East rival.
ESPN's Jeff Passan reported on Saturday that the Mets were acquiring outfielder Jesse Winker from the Washington Nationals. The trade is pending a physical.
The Jesse Winker-to-the-Mets deal is in the medical phase right now, so it is not officially done. The hope is that it will be completed soon.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 28, 2024
Mets bolster outfield depth by acquiring Jesse Winker from Nationals
Winker is having his best year, as compared to his 2022 and 2023 campaigns with the Seattle Mariners and Milwaukee Brewers, respectively. In 101 games, Winker has recorded a .257 batting average, a .374 on-base percentage, a .419 slugging percentage, 11 home runs, 45 RBI, 51 runs, and 81 hits in 315 at-bats.
Winker has proven to be a thorn in the side of the Mets throughout his career. Whether it was waving goodbye to Mets fans at Citi Field in 2019 as a member of the Cincinnati Reds, or waving at said fans after hitting a home run in 2022 as a member of the Mariners. It is also important to note that whichever team he's played for, Winker had hit well against the Mets.
In 31 career games, Winker slashed .283/.392/.453 while recording three home runs, 18 RBI, 19 runs, and 30 hits in 106 at-bats.
This is a good get for the Mets, as they get a left-handed bat in the lineup to face off against right-handed pitching. As Joel Sherman of the New York Post points out, Winker has a .834 OPS against right-handed pitching this season. Not to mention, Winker is only on a $2 million contract for the year, so they get an solid bat in their lineup for cheap.
feed