The New York Mets are likely to continue eyeing major moves heading towards the trade deadline. President of baseball operations David Stearns revamped his roster in the winter with several offseason trades and free agency signings. The moves, however, have not exactly worked out so far. As of April 30, New York has the fewest wins in all of Major League Baseball.
While Stearns has seemingly made multiple questionable winter moves, not adequately replacing Pete Alonso seems to be the pick of the bunch. After seven successful seasons in Queens, the star first baseman opted to sign with the Baltimore Orioles ahead of the 2026 campaign. In turn, the Mets brought in Jorge Polanco on a two-year, $40 million deal to mostly be their new first baseman.
Nevertheless, Polanco had never started an MLB game at the position during his career. The infielder also arrived in New York with a fairly extensive injury history. In fact, Polanco has played at least 140 games in a season only twice before. And the last time he reached this figure was during the 2021 campaign. The veteran is currently on the injured list due to wrist and Achilles issues.
To help give their team a boost, Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller is predicting that the Mets will target Munetaka Murakami before the trade deadline. The Japanese slugger previously signed a two-year, $34 million contract with the Chicago White Sox. Despite the relatively modest salary, the first baseman currently co-leads MLB with 12 home runs. As a result, Murakami is likely leading the American League Rookie of the Year race.
New York Mets Would Have to Make Huge Offer to Grab Munetaka Murakami
GettyThe Mets could use Munetaka Murakami’s power in their anemic lineup.
Some clubs had doubts about Murakami’s ability to acclimate to MLB pitching. This, however, has not been the case. Along with already slugging 12 home runs in 31 games, the first baseman has also posted a .564 slugging and a .939 OPS. He is playing solid defense at the corner infield position as well. Murakami’s 8.43 range factor per game ranks sixth among qualified MLB first basemen.
So why would the White Sox want to trade him? As Miller puts it, Chicago would have to be blown away by an offer. The New York Mets could help facilitate a deal by including highly rated pitching prospect Jonah Tong in a trade proposal. With Carson Benge in the big leagues, Tong is currently the top-rated prospect in the organization. The White Sox would likely want quality young arms in future deals.
New York Needs Upgrade at First Base
The New York Mets will be quite familiar with Murakami. After all, the club was previously linked with an offseason move for the slugger for much of the winter. Passing on the star likely keeps Stearns up at night. While Murakami is excelling in Chicago, New York’s first basemen are struggling. In fact, the Mets have gotten just two total home runs and posted a combined .589 OPS from the position in 2026.
First base is not New York’s only issue, but the position could certainly use an upgrade. Even if the Mets continue to falter through the summer, they may target Murakami with eyes on 2027. Stearns and team owner Steve Cohen have been known to be aggressive in the market.
Mets Expected to Target Star Rookie Slugger via Trade