​The Mets’ 2.23 ERA reliever, once pegged as potential Shohei Ohtani or Bryce Harper stopper, first appeared in The Sporting News, which also notes The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here. Unless they pull off a miraculous three-week winning streak, the New York Mets figure to be obvious sellers at this year’s trade deadline. The season has been disappointing overall, and cornerstone players such as shortstop Francisco Lindor and left fielder Juan Soto are not destined to be moved. Yet several other players, on both sides of the ball, could be moved, and one increasingly discussed name is left-handed reliever Brooks Raley.
Bleacher Report’s Tim Kelly labeled the 38-year-old as a “buy-low” trade candidate for interested clubs. “Brooks Raley might not be the guy an NL contender acquires to get Shohei Ohtani, Bryce Harper or Matt Olson out in the eighth inning, but he could be someone an aggressive manager turns to in the sixth to try to get out of a jam against a tough lefty,” Kelly wrote. It’s possible that Harper or Olson could be that tough lefty who steps up in a game-changing moment. Left-handed hitters have batted .188 against Raley in his 36 appearances this season, while right-handed batters are hitting a respectable .236 off him.
Raley is 38 years old and on an expiring contract, so he isn’t likely to fetch a large return for the Mets, Kelly adds. “Both he and A.J. Minter are interesting left-handed options that David Stearns likely will deal in the coming weeks.” The conclusion for the Mets seems clear: it makes little sense to hold on to Raley. While they might not receive more than a non-prospect minor leaguer in return, any return is better than losing him for nothing.
The looming dynamic between the Dodgers and Yankees for Tarik Skubal, a potential path toward a trade for Byron Buxton, and the latest notes from the Mets’ offseason frame all swirl around a market that could shift quickly. The Mets, as headlines hint, could be in a position where a strategic move on a reliever like Raley becomes a meaningful part of their broader deadline plans, especially if they’re reinforcing for a future where every remaining game carries added significance. In the broader context, the industry is watching, with scouts and executives weighing how a season’s late-stage decisions could redefine both the Mets’ bullpen and the contours of this year’s trade landscape.