Mets, Yankees swap relievers in rare trade
New York Yankees relief pitcher Joely Rodriguez delivers against the Texas Rangers during the eighth inning of an MLB baseball game at Yankee Stadium on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — In the first major-league trade between the teams since 2004, the Mets and Yankees swapped relievers on Sunday, with righthander Miguel Castro heading to the Bronx and lefthander Joely Rodriguez coming to Queens.
Rodriguez, 30, satisfies the Mets’ need for a southpaw in the bullpen. Like Castro, he is scheduled to become a free agent after the season.
“Clearly, lefthanded relief was something that we were looking for,” general manager Billy Eppler said of the deal with his former longtime boss, Yankees GM Brian Cashman. “We were able to find a trade partner, and oddly enough, it was across town . . . We were both serving each other’s needs is what it seemed like to me. They wanted to get a bit more righthanded. We wanted to get lefthanded. Just the circumstances aligned.”
Last year, splitting time between the Rangers and Yankees, Rodriguez had a 4.66 ERA, similar to his 4.61 career mark in parts of four seasons. But he was much better after being dealt alongside Joey Gallo, posting a 2.84 ERA in 21 appearances (19 innings) with the Yankees.
The appeal for the Mets was Rodriguez’s ability to stifle lefthanded hitters, who batted .203 with a .288 OBP and .271 slugging percentage against him in 2021. Righthanded hitters had a .339/.380/.446 slash line.
“He can be very deceptive with that delivery, that arm slot, the components of the fastball, how the fastball behaves, how lefthanded hitters react to it,” Eppler said. “It looks like he can be somebody who helps us a lot, so we grabbed him.”
Added manager Buck Showalter, who had Rodriguez in Orioles spring training in 2018: “He’s really developed into a dependable guy. We’re happy to have him. Serves a need we have.”
Castro, 27, had a 3.45 ERA last year. The Mets acquired him from the Orioles at the 2020 trade deadline.
The Mets still could carry another lefthander, such as Chasen Shreve or Alex Claudio. Both have been in camp (and pitched well) as non-roster invitees. Shreve had an opt-out clause in his contract for Sunday, creating urgency for the Mets to make a decision on him.
The Mets and Yankees hadn’t made a major-league trade since Dec. 3, 2004, when the Mets’ Mike Stanton and Yankees’ Felix Heredia switched places.
More trade talk
A day after the Mets reportedly passed on trading Dominic Smith to the Padres, Eppler wasn’t interested in discussing further possible deals.
“I have nothing active right now,” he said. “I generally am always open to improving the roster whenever I can.”
Extra bases
Francisco Lindor became the first Mets position player to play all nine innings in an exhibition when the Mets beat the Marlins, 8-4, on Sunday . . . Robinson Cano went 4-for-4 with a double, an RBI and two runs scored. That upped his Grapefruit League average from .222 to .364.
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
