Mets' possible trade with Padres falls through

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — A potential significant trade that would have sent Dominic Smith to the Padres for multiple major-leaguers fell through Saturday night after the Mets reportedly decided they didn’t want to take on the money owed to first baseman Eric Hosmer.

For much of the day, the Mets mulled rejiggering their first base/DH depth chart by dealing Smith and bringing in Hosmer and righthanded starter Chris Paddack, sources said.

Ultimately, general manager Billy Eppler and his inner circle of baseball executives opted to keep Smith, at least for now, keeping alive a potentially awkward situation for Smith.

“It sounds like [Hosmer is] going to stay with us, which is great,” the Padres’ Wil Myers told reporters in Arizona.

Such a change would have been a huge opportunity for Smith, a first baseman/leftfielder who after being a starting position player in recent seasons — and proving himself to be a highly effective hitter when healthy — for now is relegated to the Mets’ bench/DH timeshare with J.D. Davis and Robinson Cano. He also is expected to see time at first, spelling Pete Alonso, and leftfield, when Mark Canha gets a rest or plays elsewhere.

This was not, of course, the first time Smith’s name has come up in trade talks. The possibility of the Mets shipping him out has existed ever since Alonso won the first-base job three years ago.

“Bad players don’t get talked about much, right?” manager Buck Showalter said Saturday. “I have conversations with Dom every day in some form or fashion, just keeping it open. When you’re a good player like Dom, I think you’re used to having different scenarios discussed when you play a position that for instance Pete plays, for instance [Mark] Canha plays. It’s nice to be wanted or liked.”

MLB Network first reported that the deal was not happening.

For the Mets, the major personnel draw in this would-have-been trade — the negotiations of which were first reported by The Athletic — was Paddack. He is not scheduled to be a free agent until after the 2024 season — or after 2025 if he is sent to the minors for a few weeks — and indeed can be sent down to the minors.

The Mets need starting pitching immediately (with Jacob deGrom and perhaps Max Scherzer unavailable to start the season), all year (considering the rotation’s other question marks) and in future years (four of their five anticipated starters might be free agents at the end of this season). So Paddack would have helped fill those needs.

Although the Mets decided against this move, their need — and desire — for another young-ish starter remains. Smith and Davis remain their best major-league trade chips.

Hosmer is owed $59 million over the next four seasons, the end of an eight-year, $144 million contract he signed with the Padres before the 2018 season. San Diego reportedly would have paid more than half of the remaining money as part of the terms of the trade.

Notes & quotes: In the minor-league intrasquad scrimmage that was supposed to feature Max Scherzer (until he was scratched because of right hamstring tightness), Trevor May and Adam Ottavino pitched an inning each for a second day in a row, checking off a key spring training box. Miguel Castro also pitched and will do so again Sunday . . . Prospects Jaylen Palmer and Jake Mangum made diving catches in centerfield, the latter laying out completely and basically plucking the ball off the grass . . . Mark Vientos played third base and Brett Baty played leftfield for the same team, a potential preview of if and when they’re on the same club during this or future seasons. Vientos will open the season with Triple-A Syracuse, Baty with Double-A Binghamton.

By Tim Healey

timothy.healey@newsday.com@timbhealey

Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.