Could the New York Mets be a Dark Horse in the Sweepstakes for Indians SS Francisco Lindor?

While it's been quiet as of late when it comes to the Indians talk of dealing shortstop Francisco Lindor, there's still plenty of teams interested, and one might be in the Big Apple and not be the Yankees.

The Indians have been quiet with the Christmas season upon us, and likely with New Year’s fast approaching there’s probably not going to be much noise till 2020 officially rings in.

That doesn’t mean that the Indians won’t take phone calls in this week if a team wants to chat about a potential deal for superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor.

There are still lots of rumblings about the Los Angeles Dodgers being the front runner for the services of Lindor, and that eventually they will put the best package available for him.

While the Dodgers might be the team that everyone thinks is going to land Lindor, last week MLB.com put out a column about some potential trades that fans are not talking about, and they think there’s a chance that the New York Mets may be in the running for Lindor.

The article states that it would be much like the deal that many believe will eventually go down with the Dodgers, that being a couple Major League players and a few prospects for the All-Star shortstop.

Here are the list of players that MLB.com states the Mets would give up in return for Lindor.

SS Amed Rosario, 1B/3B/OF J.D. Davis, 3B Brett Baty (MLB’s No. 81 prospect), LHP David Peterson (Mets’ No. 7 prospect).

Rosario would fit right in as the new Indians everyday shortstop, taking the spot of the departed Lindor. Last season the 24-year-old hit .287 with 15 homers and 52 runs batted in with 19 stolen bases.

He also had a .432 slugging percentage to go along with 30 doubles and seven triples.

The 26-year-old Davis had a solid 2019 for the Mets, as playing on a daily basis he hit .307 with 22 homers and 57 RBI with a .527 slugging percentage.

Davis had 410 at bats playing in a total of 140 games.

He also would solve one of the issues for the Indians in that from a defensive perspective he’s mostly known for playing left field, a spot the Indians could use heading into 2020.

Baty is a 20-year-old third basemen who was the Mets first pick in the draft in 2019 out of Texas. At 6-foot-3, 210 pounds Baty has a lot of ‘raw strength’ and is known for having ‘a natural feel for hitting’ and uses the entire field.

While it’s a risk counting on a young player who is just 20 years old, he could be one of the foundations for the Indians farm system if they acquired him.

24-year-old Peterson is ranked as the 7 best prospect in the Mets’ system, and last season at the AA level he went 3-6 with a 4.19 ERA.

The lefty pitcher was the first-round pick of the Mets in 2017 out of the University of Oregon, and in a scouting report has been compared to Mark Buehrle.

The other thing about such a deal is that the Indians would gain two players who can be plugged into their everyday lineup at the Major League level, along with two former first-round picks who could be a big part of their future.

The piece from MLB.com says that the Mets would be the team to turn down the deal, as they would be giving up too much for a player they would only have control over for two seasons.

In case you hadn’t seen it or forgot, here’s the deal that the site says the Dodgers would put together for Lindor.

OF Alex Verdugo, RHP Dustin May (MLB’s No. 32 prospect), C Keibert Ruiz (MLB’s No. 33 prospect), INF Jeter Downs (MLB’s No. 87 prospect).

The Dodgers might have to up their ante for Lindor, and many Tribe fans want one name involved in any sort of deal where Lindor goes to Los Angeles – that being Gavin Lux, who the Dodgers reportedly don’t want to include in any package.

For now, the Dodgers, Cincinnati Reds, New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves are other teams that have a reported interest in Lindor.

We will see if things start to pickup again once the calendar hits 2020, and if teams start to get more aggressive in their pursuit of the shortstop.