The New York Mets are among multiple playoff contending teams that head into next month’s MLB trade deadline with more questions than answers.

Mets general manager Billy Eppler did at the least address one team need on Friday, acquiring Daniel Vogelbach from the Pittsburgh Pirates. The veteran slugger is slated to compete with J.D. Davis and Dominic Smith to be the Mets’ go-to designated hitter over the stretch run of the campaign. However, the move may not rule them out from once again bolstering the position by possibly pulling off a trade for the likes of Baltimore Orioles’ Trey Mancini or Washington Nationals’ Josh Bell.

The Mets are expected to face several dilemmas over on the pitching side. Their starting rotation has dealt with a multitude of injuries in the campaign, and as was showcased by the Atlanta Braves in their World Series-winning run last season, a team can never boast enough relievers on the roster.

While Eppler may shift much of his attention in the coming week to the possibility of making a grand move for Juan Soto or Luis Castillo, he must push to provide more depth to the bullpen. At the least, these two pitchers are ones who he should consider completing moves for soon.

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2 sneaky MLB trade deadline targets for Mets

Matt Moore

In any case that the Mets pull off moves for coveted players ahead of the trade deadline, they may then not have enough in their farm system to haul in a high-priced reliever in the caliber of Detroit Tigers’ Gregory Soto. Thus, Eppler would then have to look toward other options to deal with this matter, and Texas Rangers relief pitcher Matt Moore could be one solution to the dilemma.

Moore opted to take on a role as a reliever out of the Rangers bullpen for this season, and the decision certainly has paid off quite well for both sides. The veteran left-handed pitcher has turned back the clock with a 1.61 ERA in 44.2 innings pitched. He has also posted a notable 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings mark.

Success for Moore in the campaign has hinged on his rejuvenated curveball. Opposing hitters have hit .211 against his curveball, and he has tallied for 27 strikeouts off of the pitch.

Considering that the Mets are currently in a tightly contested NL East race with the Braves, Moore could possibly be an X-factor in contests against the reigning World Series champions if the current division leaders go on to acquire him. Numerous Braves hitters have had their fair share of struggles in hitting against curveballs so far in the season, including Ronald Acuna Jr. (.158 batting average) and Matt Olson (.222 batting average).

Taking into account the fact that Moore will become a free agent later in the year, it may not be much of a hassle for the Mets to submit an enticing offer to Texas for him.

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Dillon Tate

It is up in the air as to whether the Orioles will emerge as sellers come Aug. 2. They currently sit at 3.5 games back of the Seattle Mariners for the third wild-card spot in the American League.

In the case that the Orioles decide to open the doors to offers for almost every talent on their roster, they sure would receive much interest for Dillon Tate, who has recorded a 2.40 ERA in 45.0 innings pitched this season. The durable right-handed pitcher also sits at a .100 batting average allowed with runners in scoring position.

Unlike with Moore, the Mets may need to go all out in order to orchestrate a quality trade package for Tate. The fourth-year pitcher is under team control for three more years, but as multiple relievers on the Mets roster are on par to hit free agency in November, acquiring the righty hurler could be a long-term move for Eppler.

In the big picture, Eppler will have plenty of options to bolster the roster in the coming week, and as he noted earlier in the month, he aspires to be an “equal opportunity buyer.”

“I would like to be an equal opportunity buyer,” Eppler said. “Whether that is something that helps with run prevention, great. If it helps with run production, great. Let’s try to grow those numbers as far apart as we can and be open to anything.

“I don’t want to be beholden to a shopping list, so to speak, because let’s say people thought we needed X, but Y came along and Y was so much better than X, take Y. So we’re going to look for things that are going to help on that run prevention, run production, than things that are particular.”

It remains to be seen on how Eppler will approach his first trade deadline as Mets GM.