Clay Holmes and Luke Weaver reportedly 'likely' to be traded before the Aug. 3 deadline

What happened

Clay Holmes spoke with reporters on Friday about his standing with the New York Mets and acknowledged there has not been "a ton" of progress toward a contract extension ahead of the Aug. 3 trade deadline. With Holmes sounding prepared for a trade, league front office executives indicated to SNY contributor Jim Duquette that the starter is "likely" to be moved before that date.

Duquette also reported that reliever Luke Weaver "has become the top arm available" and that it is "highly likely" he will be traded as well. Neither move has been announced by the club; both remain in the realm of reported expectation rather than completed transaction.

Why it matters

Per Yahoo Sports, the Mets are reportedly expected to be active sellers at this deadline, and the Holmes and Weaver situations represent the clearest signal of that posture. Holmes addressed his own future publicly, which is the kind of candor that tends to accelerate a market — when a starter acknowledges that extension talks have stalled, the conversation shifts from "will he stay?" to "who's calling first?"

Weaver's situation carries a different wrinkle. Per the Yahoo Sports report, he has another year on his contract running through the 2027 season, which means any acquiring club would be getting more than a rental. That contractual control is precisely what makes him, per Duquette's reporting, the top arm available on the market right now.

Holmes presents a different profile. Per the report, he holds a player option for 2027 valued at $12 million — one he is reportedly expected to decline in favor of free agency — making him a half-season addition for any buyer, with no further obligation beyond August. The distinction matters operationally: a team acquiring Weaver is buying a reliever with a known future cost; a team acquiring Holmes is renting a starter for a pennant push. Both profiles have a market. They just attract different kinds of buyers, and likely different kinds of returns.

Where the club stands

The Mets sit at 74-88 (.457), fifth in the NL East and 20 games back in the division. They are eliminated from both the division race and the Wild Card race, ranking 10th in the Wild Card standings at 14.0 games relative to the cut line. The streak entering the weekend is L1.

A 74-88 record is the kind of number that makes the front office's posture self-explanatory. There is no scenario in which holding Holmes and Weaver for a stretch run serves the organization better than converting them into future assets. The math did that work quietly; the deadline is simply the calendar catching up.

The upcoming schedule at Citi Field features the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday and Sunday — Nolan McLean is the probable starter against Yoshinobu Yamamoto on Saturday, with Freddy Peralta lined up against Emmet Sheehan on Sunday — before the Atlanta Braves arrive Monday with Zac Thornton probable against Martín Pérez. That is a formidable pair of opponents to close out the weekend, and the Dodgers series arrives while the Holmes trade chatter is at its loudest. Whether Holmes is in the rotation, in trade discussions, or both simultaneously is one of the more interesting logistical questions the Mets front office is managing right now.

Is Holmes pitching while this plays out?

That is the question fans are most likely asking, and the honest answer is: the reporting does not say. What it does say is that Holmes spoke with reporters on Friday, acknowledged limited extension progress, and that league executives — per Duquette — view a trade as likely before Aug. 3. The deadline is days away. The Dodgers are in town this weekend. The schedule and the transaction window are running in parallel, and the club has not announced anything.

What we don't know yet

The reporting establishes likelihood and market interest, not destinations. No acquiring team has been named for either Holmes or Weaver in the material available. The degree to which extension talks could still revive — Holmes said there has not been "a ton" of progress, which is not the same as none — remains an open question, though the framing from league executives suggests the market has largely moved past that possibility.

Weaver's contract status through 2027 also means any trade would involve more financial and roster calculus than a standard rental. What the Mets would seek in return, and from whom, is not addressed in the current reporting.

Separately, outfielder Luis Robert Jr. has drawn "preliminary interest" from multiple teams, per Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, adding another layer to what Yahoo Sports describes as an expected seller posture for New York. That situation is at an earlier stage — preliminary interest is a considerable distance from a deal — but it rounds out the picture of a front office that appears to be fielding calls across the roster.

What to watch

The Aug. 3 deadline is the hard stop. Between now and then, watch for any reporting on specific acquiring teams for Holmes or Weaver, any update on whether extension talks with Holmes have moved at all, and whether the Weaver market — given his contract running through 2027 — draws the kind of multi-team competition that tends to drive return value upward.

The Mets' upcoming series against the Dodgers and Braves will also serve as a live audition of sorts, whether the front office intends it that way or not. Buyers watch. The calendar is short. Per the reporting from Duquette and Yahoo Sports, the Mets reportedly know exactly where this is headed.