Mets trade Addison Reed to the Red Sox

With the non-waiver trade deadline mere hours away, the Mets have traded closer Addison Reed to the Red Sox. The deal is still pending medicals, but the players are agreed upon. The Mets will receive Gerson Bautista, Jamie Callahan, and Stephen Nogosek.

Reed has filled in very well as the Mets’ closer with Jeurys Familia on the disabled list with blood clots in his shoulder. While his numbers aren’t quite as elite as last season, Reed is still running a K/BB of just over eight, the sixth-best mark among relievers this season. He’s been hurt by the long ball a bit more this year than his first two seasons with the Mets, but his 2.57 ERA is still extremely valuable at the back end of the bullpen. He’ll slot in as a setup man for Craig Kimbrel, one of the few relievers that has outperformed Reed during his time with the Mets.

All three prospects the Mets will receive are relief arms. Bautista is currently in High-A, where he’s striking out more than ten batters per nine innings but walking more than five. He’s very much an arm strength lottery play. Nogosek is a bit more polished, featuring a low arm slot that allows him to dominate right hand batters but likely leaves him vulnerable to lefties. Callahan is the most advanced arm, currently striking out more than eleven batters per nine innings at Triple-A.

For the Mets, this is a fantastic outcome for what appeared to be little more than a salary dump in 2015. In exchange for two non-prospects, the Mets got two seasons of an elite reliever, and have now turned that reliever into prospects likely more valuable than what they gave up in the first place.