JJ Putz Traded to the New York Mets

Last season, the New York Mets had one of the worst bullpens in baseball. In 2009, their bullpen could be the biggest strength. After the Mets signed Francisco Rodriguez, they were involved in a three-team, 12-player trade that landed JJ Putz from the Seattle Mariners.

The 31-year-old Putz was a closer for Seattle for the last three seasons. Although he wasn’t great in 2008, his previous two years were very good. In 2006, Putz had 36 saves and a 2.30 ERA. In 2007, he had 40 saves to go with an ERA of 1.38. Last season, Putz had an ERA of 3.89 and only 15 saves.

The Mets are obviously going to hope that Putz regains his form from 2006 and 2007. And while Rodriguez will be the closer, Putz is going to be moved to a setup role. The two players combined give the Mets the best pair of relievers in Major League Baseball.

In the trade, the Mets also acquired Jeremy Reed and Sean Green. The Mariners got Franklin Gutierrez, Mike Carp, Aaron Heilman, Ezequiel Carrera, Jason Vargas, Endy Chavez and Maikel Cleto, while the Cleveland Indians got Luis Valbuena and Joe Smith. However, it’s quite clear the JJ Putz was the big piece traded in this three-team trade.

Photo credit: Newscom