If the Mets can survive the next week with a patched-together pitching staff, they might find their way back to relative stability before the All-Star break.
Here is reporting on current and possible future members of the Mets rotation. Information is from league sources.
— If all goes well, Sean Manaea could make his season debut next Sunday in Kansas City, the day before the All-Star break.
Manaea has so far responded well to the cortisone shot intended to treat the discomfort caused by a bone fragment, or “loose body,” in his left elbow. He is scheduled to make a final rehab start on Tuesday for Triple-A Syracuse. The team will then decide whether to start him on Sunday or wait until after the break. The prediction here is that Manaea will close out the first half.
Kodai Senga is also a solid possibility to return from the IL next weekend in Kansas City.
— The Mets are actively scouring the trade market for pitching. But they are unlikely to land an impact starter much before the trade deadline, because — like all buying teams — the Mets are at the mercy of the market. David Stearns could choose to get ripped off today, or he could wait until late July for prices to settle at their actual level.
— The Mets have a better chance of trading for a reliever earlier in the month. Those can occasionally become more readily available than starters in mid-July. The Mets acquired Phil Maton last year on July 10.
— As first reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Mets have expressed interest in starter Mitch Keller. The context for that is that the Mets have made a call on just about every potentially available starter. Nothing is close on any front.
Keller is making $15 million this season and $52.5 million from 2026-2028. Because of that hefty price tag, he is not expected to fetch a top prospect/young position player with years of club control, like Ronny Mauricio.
— A reunion between the Mets and Luis Severino has to be considered unlikely — but we wouldn’t call it impossible.
Severino left the Mets because the Mets — even though they liked the player and person — didn’t consider the three-year, $67 million contract he signed with the Athletics to be a reasonable deal for him. It made a bit more sense for the A’s, who had to overpay a free agent in order to convince him to play in their minor league ballpark in Sacramento.
But Severino has publicly complained about that ballpark, leading to an industry belief that the A’s would eat money to…