It might be a while before we see Brooks Raley back on the field. The New York Mets left-handed reliever isn’t close to throwing again which is a sign that he’ll likely be out for months. Bad news with injuries tends to be even worse than suspected.
So what do the Mets do? They’ll ask Jake Diekman to get those big outs against left-handed hitters. They’ll probably mix in Josh Walker, Danny Young, and maybe even Tyler Jay again onto the roster. The Mets will, undoubtedly, also keep an eye on the trade market.
It’s not too soon for a deal to strike either. Teams are already throwing in the towel. The Miami Marlins traded Luis Arraez to the San Diego Padres. Much less notable was Robbie Grossman going from the equally as bad Chicago White Sox to the Texas Rangers. The Mets might not pull the trigger too quickly, however, they should already have a close eye on these three left relievers who could be on the move this summer in a trade.
If there’s a guy the Mets could possibly pick up in a trade tomorrow, it’s Jalen Beeks. A former teammate of Raley’s with the Tampa Bay Rays, Beeks found his way to the Colorado Rockies in the offseason via waiver claim. Coming off of an unimpressive 2023 campaign with the Rays featuring a 5.95 ERA in 42.1 innings, he has actually yielded far better results with the Rockies to start the season.
Through 18.1 innings, Beeks is 2-2 with a 2.45 ERA. He has walked batters at a rate of 3.9 per 9 and struck them out at a surprisingly low 6.9 per 9. In his past three seasons (excluding 2021 which he missed due to injury), he was over 10 per 9. The secret to his success might be how few line drives are getting hit off the bat against him. He’s at only 9.4% this season.
Beeks, like many relievers, has been up and down over the years. His time with the Rays concluded with a 4.18 ERA. You can swing numbers he posted in Tampa Bay in either direction. In years when his ERA was high, his FIP tended to be lower and vice versa. In either case, he seems like a perfectly attainable arm for the Mets to grab.
Beeks is incredibly affordable at under $2 million. He becomes a free agent at the end of the season so the commitment isn’t major. Amazingly, he even has a minor league option left. What’ll it cost, Rockies?
