Morning Briefing: Mets Looking to Trade Paul Blackburn

Good morning, Mets fans!

Per The Athletic‘s Will Sammon and Tim Britton, the Mets are actively shopping 31-year-old right-hander Paul Blackburn ahead of Thursday’s trade deadline, despite him currently being on the injured list with a right shoulder impingement. Blackburn threw 87 pitches in his most recent rehab outing with Triple-A Syracuse, allowing just one earned run over six-plus innings. He was slated to make a final rehab start on Saturday before rejoining the big-league club.

Though his time in Queens has been tainted by injuries and poor results, Blackburn was once an All-Star, and his starting experience might make him a low-cost option for teams needing rotation depth. Given his recent struggles and health history, the Mets aren’t expected to receive much in return, but a deal could help clear roster space while giving Blackburn a fresh opportunity elsewhere. Overall, he owns a 7.71 ERA this season and a 6.28 ERA over 43 total innings in a Mets uniform.

Blackburn had drawn trade interest as early as June, but that became moot as the Mets faced rotation issues of their own.

Latest Mets News

The Mets dropped their second straight on Tuesday, falling 7-1 to the Padres. The game stayed close until the seventh, when José Buttó allowed four baserunners and Chris Devenski let them all score on a three-run homer. To make matters worse, Juan Soto exited with a foot contusion, though the X-rays on his foot have come back negative. Offensively, the Mets managed just four hits, with all of them coming from the bottom half of the lineup.

Today, New York will send Clay Holmes (9-5, 3.40 ERA) to the mound to face the recently returned Yu Darvish (0-3, 9.18 ERA) as they look to salvage one of the three games. First pitch is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. ET and will air on SNY.

Per Buster Olney of ESPN, the Cincinnati Reds could potentially have interest in one of the Mets’ trio of young infielders, depending on the asking price for more expensive options like the Diamondbacks’ Eugenio Suárez.

MLB.com‘s Mark Feinsand writes that the Mets and White Sox are in talks involving Luis Robert Jr., and infielder Luisangel Acuña has been among the names discussed. Via Feinsand, one source called the Mets the “frontrunner” for Robert, though the Padres and Phillies are also reportedly in pursuit.

The Mets have optioned right-hander Huascar Brazobán to Triple-A Syracuse to open a roster spot for Chris Devenski, who was signed to a major league deal on Tuesday. Carlos Mendoza said Brazobán will stretch out to 40 pitches in Syracuse as the Mets look to build him up for an eventual multi-inning role with the big league club.

Latest MLB News

On Tuesday, Eugenio Suárez’s CT scan and MRI came back clean, revealing no breaks.

The Braves announced that Ronald Acuña Jr. was removed from Tuesday’s game due to right Achilles tightness. According to Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Acuña is in a walking boot and going on the injured list.

Former Dodgers catching prospect Diego Cartaya has a minor league deal with the San Francisco Giants, as first reported by Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extra Base. Cartaya, 23, was recently released by the Twins after slashing .085/.217/.136 in Triple-A.

The Royals designated 45-year-old lefty Rich Hill for assignment after just one week on the team’s active roster. He made two appearances and took the loss in both, ending his brief stint with his 14th MLB team. Perhaps another club takes a flier on Hill, which would give him a record 15th team.

The Dodgers placed speedy utility man Hyeseong Kim on the injured list with left shoulder bursitis. After hitting .383 across May and June, he’s fallen off a cliff in July, batting just .193 while dropping his average by 76 points and his OPS by nearly 200.

Former Phillie Seranthony Domínguez was traded from the Orioles to the Blue Jays for pitching prospect Juaron Watts-Brown, confirmed by ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The trade happened between games of the Blue Jays-Orioles doubleheader. Domínguez even walked past his old teammates on his way to the Blue Jays bullpen.

AL Rookie of the Year candidate Jacob Wilson has been placed on the injured list with a fractured right forearm. Wilson, 23, is hitting .312/.354/.439 on the year but was struggling through a rough slump that opened the door for teammate Nick Kurtz to emerge as the new rookie of the year front-runner.

The Twins have placed outfielder Byron Buxton on the 10-day injured list with left ribcage inflammation. He’s actually managed to stay healthy for 85 games this season, but it’s yet another trip to the IL for the former No. 2 overall pick.

Latest on MMO

Jack Ramsey’s rumor roundup from 7/29 includes Mets interest in Ryan Helsley.

David Melendi takes a look at what it might take to extend David Peterson.

Melendi also writes about Mark Vientos and his recent resurgence.

Mathias Altman-Kurosaki profiles Minnesota relievers, including Jhoan Duran, in a trade profile.

Jorge Eckardt selects the most interesting traits from the Mets’ Day 2 draft picks.

On This Date in Mets History

2004: The Mets infamously trade away Scott Kazmir to the Rays for Victor Zambrano, and send Jose Bautista and Ty Wigginton to the Pirates for Kris Benson and Jeff Keppinger. Don’t worry—Rick Peterson can fix Zambrano… well, apparently not.

2016: Mike Piazza‘s number 31 is retired.

2021: The Mets send Pete Crow-Armstrong to the Cubs for Javier Báez in another win-now move that ultimately proves costly.

Born on This Date: Ellis Valentine (1954), Clint Hurdle (1957), Todd Haney (1965).

The post Morning Briefing: Mets Looking to Trade Paul Blackburn appeared first on Metsmerized Online.