Mets net Top 100 prospect Rojas, send Holmes, Taylor to Cubs

NEW YORK -- As Monday rolled along and the Mets dealt player after player, beefing up their farm system, a nagging question lingered: Where was the signature prospect of this Trade Deadline selloff?

President of baseball operations David Stearns finally answered it with his final deal of Deadline day, packaging Clay Holmes and Tyrone Taylor together to acquire the No. 63 prospect in baseball, infielder Jefferson Rojas, from the Cubs. Rojas now rates as the organization’s top-ranked prospect, ahead of Jonah Tong.

“Really excited, well-rounded player,” Stearns said. “All of our reports are [he’s] an extremely hard worker and is going to fit in very well to our organization.”

TRADE DETAILS
Mets get: INF Jefferson Rojas (NYM No. 1 prospect, No. 63 overall)
Cubs get: RHP Clay Holmes, OF Tyrone Taylor

A bat-first infielder who received a $1 million bonus as a teenager out of the Dominican Republic, the 21-year-old Rojas was hitting .270 with 15 homers and an .800 OPS in 91 games at Double-A Knoxville. Despite a decent amount of power, Rojas does not strike out excessively, though he’ll need to prove he can maintain his strong contact rates at the upper levels of the Minors. So far, so good in that regard, as Rojas has struck out just 16.4 percent of the time at Double-A, which places 15th among 163 qualified players at the level.

Defensively, one scout who watched Rojas play earlier this year tabbed him as a future everyday second baseman, noting that he doesn’t have the defensive instincts to stick long term at shortstop. His best defensive asset may be his arm, which is strong enough for third base if the Mets choose to develop him there.

Stearns described Rojas as a player who “has experience at all three positions on the dirt,” along with “the ability to play all three” and “a very well-rounded offensive profile.” He has been one of the youngest players at his level every step up the Minor League ladder.

“He’s really done exactly what you would want to see a player do who was a very well-thought of amateur on the international market,” Stearns said, “and has really just performed and progressed throughout his development.”

The price for all that was a package of Holmes, who is near-certain to decline the $12 million option on his contract for 2027, and Taylor, who will become a free agent after this season. Before fracturing his right fibula on a comebacker on May 15, Holmes was the Mets’ most reliable starting pitcher. His absence over the next two months was one of several significant obstacles that the team couldn’t overcome.

Taylor, too, missed time with a right hip flexor strain, but he came back so forcefully, with seven home runs in 24 games, that he added notable value to his profile. Scouts flocked to Citi Field in the days leading up to the Deadline in part to glimpse what a healthy Taylor could do.

“Those are types of deals that we had explored throughout the past week,” Stearns said of packaging multiple players to land a better prospect. “Somewhat ironically I guess, it’s the one that came together at the end.”

In the days leading up to the Deadline, Rojas was hardly the only interesting prospect the Mets acquired. Part of the return for Freddy Peralta was Émilien Pitre, a Québécois infielder who brings a standout hit tool and excellent speed to the organization. For Luke Weaver, the Mets received Sammy Stafura, a Hudson Valley product who offers premium power from the shortstop position. For Huascar Brazobán, they acquired Gabe Davis, a starting pitcher who can touch 100 mph.

Rojas was the Deadline headline, which doesn’t mean he’ll wind up being the best player of the bunch. But he certainly has a chance to be as the Mets look to overhaul their organization heading into 2027.

“We’re excited about the players we’re bringing in,” Stearns said. “We think we added a tremendous amount of talent to our organization that will help us going forward. We believe it was the right thing to do.”