New York Mets Acquire Lefty Reliever from Rays via Trade

The Mets have made a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays for a lefty reliever.

SAN DIEGO - The Mets have had an active day at Winter Meetings.

After signing starting pitcher Jose Quintana earlier this morning, the Mets then acquired lefty reliever Brooks Raley from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for minor league pitcher Keyshawn Askew.

The New York Post's Jon Heyman was the first to report this news.

Raley is coming off a career-best year for the Rays, in which he posted a 2.68 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in 53.2 innings (60 appearances). For his career, Raley has a 4.64 ERA, spending time with four different teams.

As Joel Sherman of The Post pointed out, left-handed batters are hitting just .166 off Raley since 2020, which is 10th best in baseball. In 2022, lefties hit .155 with a .483 on-base percentage against Raley.

Raley is also one of the best relievers in the league at inducing soft contact, with his hard hit percentage ranking in the top 1% and 2% in the game since the start of 2020, per Baseball Savant.

The move to acquire Raley was one the Mets made as they continue to try to fill out the rest of their bullpen. Currently, Edwin Diaz, Drew Smith and Tommy Hunter are the only returning relievers from last year's unit.

Last season, the Mets only had one southpaw in their bullpen in Joely Rodriguez, who signed with the Boston Red Sox this offseason. Now, with Raley in the mix, the lefty is expected to fill Rodriguez's role and should have a regular spot in the Mets' pen.

Read More:

- Mets Sign Jose Quintana to 2-year Deal

- Mets Showing 'Continued Interest' in Kodai Senga

- Mets Sign Justin Verlander to Mega Contract

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