Pirates Trade Demands of Mets in Failed Starling Marte Talks Revealed
By Brendan Balsamo
On Monday, the rumblings of the Pittsburgh Pirates moving Starling Marte finally came to fruition, as he was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks for two prospects. For the longest time it seemed like the New York Mets were in on the Marte trade talks, but when the Pirates approached them with their request, they had to turn it down.
According to MLB Network's Jon Heyman, the Pirates' request to the Mets for Marte was two of their top five prospects. The Mets easily turned it down, saying it was too steep for them.
Pirates’ request of Mets in Marte talks was for 2 of their top 5 prospects. Mets thought: too steep for them
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 27, 2020
In an outfield that already has a lot of weapons, acquiring Marte was not a necessity for the Mets. With Michael Conforto, Brandon Nimmo, J.D. Davis, Jeff McNeil, Yoenis Cespedes, and Jake Marisnick already there, the outfield is set.
#Mets reportedly had interest in Starling Marte all winter, but outfield wasn't exactly a need for them to overpay for https://t.co/Mz3YhKGIyL
— Michael Natale (@mikereportblog) January 27, 2020
The Mets' issue last year was in no way their offense. Marte is not a weapon they needed to acquire.
The Mets bullpen almost singlehandedly blew their season for them. Pete Alonso, McNeil, Davis, Amed Rosario, Wilson Ramos, and Conforto were all hitters to fear in their lineup. Besides Seth Lugo, the Mets bullpen was a dumpster fire.
The key to a Starling Marte trade & the #Mets was to add Marte to an OF that included Nimmo. Trading Nimmo for Marte doesn’t make them that much better, if at all, & you’d get an older player who costs more who is less controllable.
— Michael Baron (@michaelgbaron) January 27, 2020
It’s a value game. The value wasn’t there.
Marte isn't what the Mets needed, and trading two top prospects would not solve any problems.