The New York Mets have once again put first baseman Ike Davis on the trading block, ESPN New York reported Tuesday.
According to the report, Mets general manager Sandy Alderson has reached out to teams he previously contacted over the winter to gauge whether they still have any interest in Davis.
“Alderson will go through the due diligence just in case,” Adam Rubin reported.
Davis, 27, has yet to be appear in a Grapefruit League game in more than two weeks due to a right calf injury, and it is believed that he would have to return to action if any trade would to occur. There is a high likelihood no trade goes down, per the report, but Alderson is still going through the motions to try and get something done if any team is interested.
Previously, it was reported the Pittsburgh Pirates, Milwaukee Brewers, Houston Astros, and Baltimore Orioles had interest in acquiring Davis over the winter. And according to ESPN’s Jayson Stark, the Astros remain in search of a first baseman since the release of former first-round pick Brett Wallace.
Per Stark, the Astros have been making calls around the league and are interested in Mike Carp of the Boston Red Sox, John Mayberry Jr. of the Philadelphia Phillies and Tyler Moore of the Washington Nationals. Stark calls them all “unlikely fits,” however, making Davis all the more attractive.
#Pirates aren’t only team looking for 1B. #Astros calling around on group that includes Mike Carp, Mayberry, Tyler Moore. All unlikely fits
— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) March 18, 2014
Davis was recalled by the Mets from Triple-A Las Vegas over the summer. He was previously demoted after batting .161 with five home runs, 16 RBI and a .243 on-base percentage, but bounced back with a strong second half in which he batted .286 with a .954 OPS and .449 on-base percentage. Davis is two years removed from his career-best campaign in 2012 when he batted .227 with 32 home runs and 90 RBI while appearing in 156 games.
Davis remains in contention for the Mets’ starting first-base job along with Lucas Duda. Like Davis, Duda has been out of the lineup due to injury since the beginning of March. The team has 10 spring-training games left when they return to the field on Thursday.
