Five Best Trade Partners for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Chris Archer

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PORT ST. LUCIE, FL – MARCH 11: Manager Luis Rojas #19 of the New York Mets before a spring training baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Clover Park at on March 11, 2020 in Port St. Lucie, Florida. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
PORT ST. LUCIE, FL – MARCH 11: Manager Luis Rojas #19 of the New York Mets before a spring training baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Clover Park at on March 11, 2020 in Port St. Lucie, Florida. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

New York Mets

The other New York team, the Mets, had one of the best 1-2 combos atop their rotation in back-to-back Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom, and the flame throwing Noah Syndergaard leading it off. They also have a solid number three in 2019 deadline acquisition Marcus Stroman. However, Syndegaard will now miss all of 2020 because of Tommy John Surgery. After these three, the questions arise.

Lefty Steven Matz has not panned out as the Mets would have hoped and injuries have been a major bugaboo. The team did sign two other starters this off-season, but neither are anything special. They signed the durable, but inconsistent, Rick Porcello and one time Cardinals top prospect Michael Wacha. Porcello’s Cy Young season has become an outlier in an otherwise solid, but unspectacular career, and Wacha has only started 30 games in a single season twice.

If the Pittsburgh Pirates were to engage in trade talks with the Mets over Archer, they should definitely ask about the team’s 11th best prospect, Kevin Smith. Smith spent his 2019 season between High-A ball, and Double-A. In 117 innings, the left-handed prospect pitched to the tune of a 3.15 ERA, 2.68 FIP, and 1.26 WHIP. He struck out a grand total of 130 batters, and walked just 39. When he did give up hits, only six of them were home runs.