White Sox asking Mets for promising slugger in potential Luis Robert trade

The New York Mets are interested in White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr., but Chicago is asking for a big price in return.

Jul 18, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Chicago White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. (88) hits a solo home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fourth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The New York Mets appear to be clicking again, entering Sunday night's game with the San Francisco Giants on a six-game winning streak.

This hot stretch has raised the stakes for David Stearns and company ahead of this week's trade deadline; Stearns has already filled one need, landing lefty reliever Gregory Soto from Baltimore, and could be looking to make a few more moves prior to Thursday.

Read More: What Mets could do next after Gregory Soto trade

One of the more prominent rumors surrounding the Mets is their interest in Chicago White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr., who is having a down year but was an All-Star as recently as 2023. Robert is hitting well right now and has a market, which has led the White Sox to demand a high price from the Mets in trade talks for him.

From @BNightengale:

• White Sox want Mark Vientos in any potential deal for Luis Robert. pic.twitter.com/t2pv62rmBC

— Metsmerized Online (@Metsmerized) July 27, 2025

USA Today's Bob Nightengale addressed the Robert trade talks in his Sunday column and mentioned that the White Sox are seeking to acquire Mark Vientos from the Mets in any version of a Robert trade. Vientos, who got off to a cold start to the season, has hit well over the past two weeks, batting .290 with a .732 OPS in 31 at-bats.

Swaggy V for the lead! #LGM pic.twitter.com/CcDL4sh4ZZ

— New York Mets (@Mets) July 27, 2025

Robert has also peaked in the month of July, hitting .351 with two home runs, nine RBI, and a .982 OPS in 37 at-bats. While this is admittedly a small sample size, it does offer hope to prospective buyers that Robert can recapture some of his All-Star form with a change of scenery away from the hopeless losing that has consumed the White Sox since the start of the 2024 campaign.

Luis Robert Jr. just sent this baseball to a different planet 😮 pic.twitter.com/wPzqpJRtEb

— MLB (@MLB) June 20, 2025

Since there are so few center fielders available on the trade market, Chicago has multiple suitors for Robert, who also has two team options for the next two seasons and is still just 27 years old. Setting the Mets' asking price at Vientos indicates the White Sox aren't planning to settle for just minor leaguers as part of a Robert package, which could be richer than what the Mets want to pay right now.

While the Mets have the potential to move one of their surplus infielders for a roster upgrade, it doesn't feel like Stearns would want to give up on Vientos, who was one of the team's most dominant hitters in the postseason a year ago, for potentially two months of Robert. Vientos may be best suited to be a designated hitter on the current roster, but he has elite power potential and is under team control through the 2029 season.

If the White Sox don't lower the price off of Vientos for a trade, it is possible the Mets look elsewhere to address center field. Other trade options could include Baltimore's Cedric Mullins and a reunion with Harrison Bader, who the Twins will look to shop, while Drew Gilbert's hot July at Triple-A Syracuse offers another internal possibility for the position.