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| David Robertson D. Benjamin Miller / Wikipedia |
The Mets made a trade almost immediately following a 2-1 victory over the Washington Nationals on Thursday night by shipping off relief pitcher David Robertson to their division rival Miami Marlins for two minor league prospects.
Robertson, 38, has been regarded as one of the most reliable bullpen arms in baseball since he made his major league debut with the Yankees in 2008. With the Mets this season, he has pitched to a 2.05 earned run average and accumulated 14 saves in 17 opportunities.
The Mets will receive two minor league prospects from Miami in the deal, 18 year old infielder Marco Vargas and 19 year old catcher Ronald Hernandez.
Vargas was signed by the Marlins in 2022 for $17,500 out of Mexico and was highly regarded for his ability to rack up hits and spray the ball to all parts of the ballpark. He is currently Miami’s number 18 prospect and he has spent the entire year at the rookie ball level. Vargas has hit .283 at the rookie level in 2023 with an absurd .421 on base percentage.
Ronald Hernandez was picked up by Miami in 2021 for $850,000 and has been at the rookie ball level since he signed with the team. Despite still being in rookie ball, Hernandez is having a breakout year as he has posted a .298 batting average with a .464 on base percentage. MLB Pipeline has stated that the 19 year old catcher from Venezuela has solid arm strength and showed improved throwing accuracy in 2022 as he threw out 33% of base stealers. He also has been regarded for his receiving ability behind the plate, displaying leadership skills, and communicating with pitchers effectively.
Robertson will join his seventh different team during his 15 year career as he will try to help the surprising Marlins make it to the playoffs for the first time since the Covid-shortened 2020 season. The Marlins are only half a game out of the last wild card spot as of the time of the trade.
The Mets made it crystal clear that they believe it is truly time to start replenishing the minor league system and they still have a lot of valuable trade chips. Players like Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Starling Marte, and Tommy Pham will most likely hit the road in the coming days and will certainly help the Mets out in the long term.