José Bautista. Asdrubal Cabrera. Turk Wendell. Lenny Dykstra. All of these players and more have been traded from the New York Mets to the Philadelphia Phillies in the middle of the season. The circumstances have differed. The plausibility of the two cutting a deal exists.
The Mets have yet to confirm whether they’ll be buyers or sellers. They trail the Phillies and other more serious Wild Card contenders, but high expectations and a massive payroll could have them pushing the boundaries further. All it takes is one winning streak for them to become buyers.
The exact opposite is true, too. A losing streak out of the All-Star break makes the Mets a team for the Phillies to pluck away at. They have a couple of trade targets Philadelphia should already have an eye on.
1) Phillies trade target on the Mets: David Robertson
Hello, David Robertson, our old friend. We’ve come to trade for you again. Acquired from the Chicago Cubs last year, Robertson is yet again a match for the Phillies this season. The urgency isn’t quite the same with All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel shutting down opponents in the ninth. Robertson is, however, a superb alternative in case of an injury and a proven setup man.
The Phillies are going to add to their bullpen this summer. Why not do a three-peat with Robertson? He’s 2-2 this season with a 2.06 ERA in 39.1 innings of work. While sharing the closer duties in Queens with Adam Ottavino at times, he has been the most exceptional reliever in New York’s bullpen and their best trade asset.
Phillies fans may feel some hesitation at revisiting him. His numbers were deceptive with a 2.70 ERA looking fine but the 3.71 FIP telling us how much he had to work out of jams. Which version of Robertson would show up if he returned to Philadelphia? It’s worth finding out.