One of the most entertaining — or infuriating, depending on your perspective — aspects of the trade deadline is the very slow way news leaks out, one tidbit after another. Like a trail of breadcrumbs, deals get pushed into public consciousness one nugget at a time. Tonight’s trail? The Mets are working on a deal for a hitter. The breadcrumbs.

#Mets still working on a deal that apparently would really please fans if it materialized.

— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinESPN) July 29, 2015

Told Mets are indeed very close to pulling off a big trade. No sense of who it is, but chance it’s a big bat.

— Marc Carig (@MarcCarig) July 29, 2015

Mets working on a trade. Not sure when of it will be done, but there's momentum. Like others, hearing it's so called big bat

— Andy Martino (@MartinoNYDN) July 29, 2015

Too much smoke for there to be no fire. So, who are they going after?

Cespedes out, Reds not moving Bruce at moment, I'm told. Parra trade fell apart last week. Mets almost certainly not on CarGo.

— Andy Martino (@MartinoNYDN) July 29, 2015

#Mets have talked to #Brewers about Carlos Gomez, sources tell me and @jonmorosi. No deal appears close. NYM also looking at other hitters.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 29, 2015

Process of elimination seems to point to Carlos Gomez, Justin Upton, or someone we haven’t yet realized is available. And, of course, Upton and the rest of the Padres just happen to be playing the Mets at Citi Field right now, so if you want to believe that the Mets are so cheap that they waited to make a deal until they could save on the plane fare, then maybe you should buy into Upton being the guy. But since Gomez is under control for next year, and could fill center field if (when?) Juan Lagares needs a DL stint, he seems like a better fit for a team that is likely playing for a Wild Card berth than a rental corner OF.

Odds are we’ll find out in the next few hours, one kernel of information at a time.