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7 hours ago
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The New York Mets are scuffling, and they need some help in the outfield.
Unfortunately, Tyrone Taylor hasn't been able to secure center field as a near-full-time starter. Jose Siri is no guarantee to return from his leg fracture at this point, so New York would do well to land a true starting center fielder at the trade deadline.
Boston Red Sox All-Star Jarren Duran would be a perfect fit if the Mets knew they were getting the 2024 version of him. The 2025 version, though, is a significantly worse hitter to this point and isn't even playing good defense in left field.
However, if he happens to be available, the Mets should certainly still give the Red Sox a call.
In their trade deadline preview, ESPN's Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel gave Duran a 25 percent chance of getting traded, based on the Red Sox's logjam in their outfield. And the Mets were one of the teams the two insiders listed as a "best fit."
"Duran had a huge breakout season in 2024, posting the seventh-best WAR in the majors at 6.7. He overperformed his underlying metrics, though -- i.e., had some lucky outcomes -- and those metrics have regressed a bit this year," Passan and McDaniel wrote.
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"Now he's underperforming them -- he has been unlucky -- so his true talent is somewhere south of that star-level 6.7 figure but better than the roughly 2 WAR (commensurate with a solid regular) he's on pace for this season."
Duran, 28, is making $3.5 million this season, has a club option for $8 million next season, and is under control via arbitration through 2028. But after putting up an OPS+ of 131 last year, he's at a 99 entering play on Wednesday.
The Red Sox will want a package commensurate with the player Duran was in 2024. The Mets (and others) will want to pay what he's been worth this year.
Whether or not a deal gets made will come down to the gap being bridged.
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