NEW YORK _ Could the Mets rebuild on the fly without subjecting fans to years of pain?
I think it's possible, more possible than a month ago when I suggested in a column that their window to win was closing quickly, as the Braves and Phillies were already passing them by in the NL East with young talent.
Since then there have been a handful of key developments in that regard:
1. Jacob deGrom has made himself untouchable, rebuild or no rebuild.
2. Brandon Nimmo has emerged as a viable part of the future, offering at least some of the youth and athleticism the Mets desperately need.
3. The sky has fallen on the season, forcing management to confront a crossroads even earlier than expected.
4. The White Sox rebuild is proceeding at a glacial pace.
I mention the White Sox because they traded one of the best pitchers in baseball, Chris Sale, two years ago to kick off a full rebuild, which brings an obvious comparison since deGrom and Noah Syndergaard are the only players the Mets have who could bring back more of that young talent they need.
Ok, so what's it all mean?
First, I still think the Mets need to act boldly if they're going to get significantly better in the next couple of years, because they don't have impact talent at the upper levels of their farm system.
And making the safe assumption they're not going to shock the baseball world by committing $350 million or so to sign Manny Machado, that means making at least one big trade.
But deGrom is off the table for me. He's one of the top five pitchers in baseball right now, and though he just turned 30, he has the type of clean, loose-limbed delivery that should allow him to pitch at a high level into his mid-30s.
And with Yoenis Cespedes and Jay Bruce under contract for two more years, the Mets aren't in position to go to a full rebuild anyway. Also, they do seem to have enough promising prospects a year or two away from the big leagues to help with a relatively short turnaround.
With that in mind, Nimmo's continued development is crucial. If he can be a productive everyday player _ or more, if his recent surge is any indication _ the Mets might have a solid young, position-player nucleus of Michael Conforto, Amed Rosario, and perhaps Dom Smith or fellow minor-league first baseman Peter Alonso.
However, there are too many ifs in that group to think it will solve all of the offensive problems. And since the Mets have more young pitchers than position players on the way over the next few years, including first-round draft picks Justin Dunn, Anthony Kay, and David Peterson, I'd have to look to trade Syndergaard for can't-miss hitting prospects who are at least close to major-league ready.
The big right-hander needs to get back on the mound, obviously, but assuming he does soon from his finger injury, Syndergaard could have time to remind teams of his dominance before the July 31 trade deadline.
Dealing him would be a gamble, no doubt, because not all prospects turn out to be Gleyber Torres, which brings us to the White Sox.
In trading Sale to the Red Sox in December of 2016 they received a package headlined by Yoan Moncada, who was ranked as the top prospect in all of baseball at the time, and Michael Kopech, a Syndergaard-like right-hander who throws 103-mph.
Yet Moncada has been underwhelming so far at the big-league level, and Kopech has alarming walk numbers in Triple-A.
Both players are young enough to still live up to their potential, but some other deals have yet to produce results as well, so for all the raves White Sox GM Rick Hahn received for the trades of Sale and Adam Eaton, his team is 25 games below .500.
And while scouts still believe Hahn has accumulated enough young talent that the rebuild should pay off eventually, the White Sox are en route to their sixth straight losing season.
So the gamble is in believing that your scouts will find the right prospects if you make such a trade, and if the Mets were to make Syndergaard available, the timing would certainly improve their odds.
In short, it appears he'd be the only starter on the market that teams would consider a difference-maker. In fact, in the National League, in particular, adding Syndergaard could set the Braves, Brewers, Cubs, or Dodgers apart as the team to beat in October.
For that distinction they ought to be willing to part with packages of premium young talent, especially since they would have Syndergaard under control for another three years.
All but the Cubs have highly-ranked farm systems, and any package would have to start with their top-ranked prospect: third baseman Austin Riley from the Braves; second baseman Keston Hiura from the Brewers; or outfielder Alex Verdugo from the Dodgers.
Get one of those players for Syndergaard, as well as another blue-chipper, and a couple of lower-level minor leaguers with high ceilings, and it would be the first step toward a turnaround.
Then the Mets would have to hope that the likes of Dunn, Kay, and Peterson blossom behind deGrom, Steven Matz, and Zack Wheeler on the pitching front. And, oh by the way, spend some money in free agency to fill in the gaps after the $31 million in contracts for Asdrubal Cabrera, Jeurys Familia, Jerry Blevins, and A.J. Ramos comes off the books this winter.
If all of that happens, just maybe the Mets could open that window to winning again without the pain of a long rebuild.
