Hours after trading Cory Mazzoni to the San Diego Padres for lefty reliever Alex Torres, GM Sandy Alderson has pulled the trigger on another deal, sending backup outfielder Matt den Dekker to the NL East rival Washington Nationals for left-handed relief pitcher Jerry Blevins.
The 31-year-old Blevins is more of a traditional LOOGY than Torres, holding left-handed batters to .212/.264/.330 during his career. Righties have hit .249/.338/.391, which is bad but not entirely dreadful. Last year with the Nats, Blevins struck out 66 batters and walked 23 in 57.1 innings. His 4.87 ERA seems terrible at first blush—especially for a reliever—but his peripherals and 2.77 FIP tell a more encouraging story.
Alderson has already said that Torres and Blevins are locks for the bullpen, which leaves the fate of Sean Gilmartin undetermined. As day broke this morning, Gilmartin was sitting pretty as the only credible lefty relief candidate still in camp with the Mets. Now he faces the very real possibility that he'll be sent back to the Twins—from whom the Mets selected him in December's Rule 5 draft—unless the Mets decide to carry three lefties in their 'pen to start the season.