Recent Mets rumors could give Pirates reunion opportunity with former All-Star

The MLB Winter Meetings are coming to a close, but the stove is still hot with rumors. One of the latest rumors that could possibily be relevant to the Pirates involves former All-Star Starling Marte. Pat Ragazzo reported that the Mets are open to trading Marte for relief pitching following the blockbuster addition of Juan Soto.

Marte is obviously on an expensive contract, making $20.75 million in 2025, which would typically turn the Pirates away, but money is never an issue for the Mets. In fact, for a decent reliever (hear that, Pirates?), New York is willing to pay for a big chunk of Marte's salary, according to The Athletic.

Pirates could reunite with Starling Marte given recent rumors with Mets

The Pirates don't have too strong of a bullpen at the moment, but there are pieces that are moveable that could get it done. They could send Carmen Mlodzinski or Colin Holderman to the Mets, but given the massive amount of control attached to those big-league arms (through 2029/2028, respectively), a one-for-one swap wouldn't make much sense. This trade would have to expand. The Pirates also have prospect options who could move to the bullpen and fulfill the Mets' needs, like Braxton Ashcraft and Mike Burrows. Both of those standout arms have suffered medical problems, likely keeping them in relief roles at the big league level.

Although he is now 36, Marte still has a solid bat at the plate, and his contract runs only through 2025. As many say, there's no such thing as a bad one-year deal. Last season, Marte batted .269, belted seven home runs, and drove in 40 runs. He added an OPS of .715, along with a WRC+ of 104, and stole 16 bases. Although those totals don't match the numbers he put up the last time he was in Pittsburgh, it would still be an improvement on what Bryan De La Cruz and Connor Joe produced.

Statcast metrics indicate that Marte was better than what the stats show. His expected batting average reached .287, ranking in the 94th percentile. Additionally, his expected slugging percentage was all the way at .425, which is nearly .040 points higher than what he actually produced.

Many Pirates fans would love to see Andrew McCutchen and Starling Marte return to the same team, and even possibly lead Pittsburgh back to the postseason. They are just a few pieces away with the pitching that they have, and Marte would be a solid addition to the hole in right field, but the price could be scary.