Mets could seek Diamondbacks’ Brandon Drury

The Mets are plummeting right out of the NL East, having been swept by the worst current representation of the sport in the Atlanta Braves. They are 6-11 in the month of June, have fallen behind the Marlins in the standings, and let the Nationals run away with the division lead. They’ve lost Lucas Duda, Juan Lagares, Travis d’Arnaud, and now David Wright to injury, and in Wright’s case, they’re looking for a longer term answer. According to the New York Daily News, they might be looking as far as Arizona at 23-year-old third baseman Brandon Drury.

Drury hit .275 with 20 XBH and 8 HR in 56 games with the Diamondbacks this season. He was optioned back to Triple-A Reno in the background of the Diamondbacks’ four-game sweep of the Phillies that mercifully ended on Monday. With Arizona mesmerized by both Jake Lamb and the power potential of Peter O’Brien (He’s only got four hits in nine games, but three of them are home runs), Drury was losing playing time at third base. The return of Shelby Miller from the disabled list necessitated his being optioned, though if David Peralta’s back issues turn into a DL stint, Drury might find himself getting back on the bus in Reno.

But clearly, there are options available to the Diamondbacks and a team hoping to tear back into contention like the Mets might be interested. However, the price tag for which the D-Backs are looking to get for their return might catch a few people off guard.

The exec said the D-Backs like Drury enough that they’d probably want Zack Wheeler for him, which seems like too much unless Arizona were to put another player in the deal.

Wheeler, another stud in the Mets’ stable of hot young arms, is working his way back from elbow surgery and expected to rejoin the Mets in July. But according to David Lennon at Newsday, the Mets don’t seem receptive to using him as a piece of a trade with anyone.

As one source explained Saturday, the Mets have “close to zero interest” in using Wheeler as trade bait, despite his potential value in helping upgrade the offense.

We’ll see how desperate teams get and how much they are willing to compromise as the trade deadline nears.