According to Mike Puma of the New York Post, the Texas Rangers and Toronto Blue Jays have minimal interest in trading for New York Mets outfielder Jay Bruce.
The Mets continue to struggle finding a taker for the left-handed hitting Bruce and his $13 million contract for the 2017 season.
Original Report – Dec 7
According to MLB.com Texas Rangers beat writer TR Sullivan on Twitter, the Mets and Rangers met today to discuss possible trades. The Mets are still trying to trade Jay Bruce who the Rangers seem to be interested in.
The Rangers have four relievers that would be phenomenal additions to the Mets bullpen, two lefties and two righties. The first lefty is former Philly Jake Diekman.
Diekman, 29, is under team control via arbitration through 2018. He has averaged 96 mph on his fastball in his career, topping out at 100.3 mph. He was very wild with the Phillies, however after being traded to the Rangers in 2015, he has pitched much better.
In 2016, Diekman went 4-2 with a 3.40 ERA. In 53 innings he struck out 59 batters and walked 26, also saving four games. His slider, which averages at 84.2 mph, would greatly benefit from Dan Warthen‘s influence.
The second Ranger lefty the Mets should check in on is 24 year-old Alex Claudio. Claudio, under team control through 2021, has been phenomenal since his call-up in 2014, posting a 2.82 ERA.
He does not strike out many batters, only 34 in 51.2 innings in 2016, however he has tremendous control as he only walked 10 batters in that span (1.7 BB/9). One big reason he doesn’t strike out many batters is that his sinker averaged only 85.4 mph on the gun and topped out at 88.7 mph in 2016. Opposing batters had a .301 BAA off that pitch, however he threw it only 55% of the time.
Batters had a much harder time squaring up his other pitches, his best of which being his changeup. He threw it 27% of the time and batters managed a mere .196 average against it. He also features a slurve which he threw 18% of the time which batters hit to a .227 clip.
With Jerry Blevins becoming expensive asking for a three-year deal, acquiring Diekman or Claudio would provide a cheap and effective alternative.
The first righty in the Rangers bullpen is acting closer Sam Dyson. The 28 year-old righty had a great year for the Rangers, saving 38 games and recording a 2.43 ERA. In 70.1 innings he struck out 55 batters and walked 23. Mets fans might recognize him as he was traded to the Rangers by the Miami Marlins during the 2015 season.
Dyson is particularly enticing because he is under team control via arbitration through the 2020 season. He has touched 100 mph on the gun in his career, and while he has a mediocre slider, Dan Warthen‘s influence would again be beneficial to him.
Last but not least is former Brewer, Blue Jay, and Royal Jeremy Jeffress. Under team control through 2019, the 29 year-old has been extremely effective of late. Since 2013 he has saved 27 games while pitching to a 2.46 ERA, striking out 150 batters in 160.1 innings and walking 55.
He is a very consistent, effective reliever that can toss flames, averaging 95.5 mph on his fastball in his career, touching 100 mph on many occasions. His curveball is his best pitch though, as batters have hit only .168 off it in his 7-year career.
All four of these pitchers would immediately upgrade the Mets bullpen and are relatively cheap. The Rangers seem interested in Bruce, but it seems unlikely they would give up more than one of those relievers for just him. If the Mets want to acquire two of these pitchers, they might have to throw a prospect or two into the mix which they’ve said they are willing to do.
