The Mets added yet another left-handed pitcher to the roster on Wednesday, trading for reliever Brooks Raley from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for minor league pitcher Keyshawn Askew. The news was first reported by Jon Heyman of MLB Network.
Brooks Raley against left-handed hitters since 2021:
161 batters faced, 60 strikeouts (37.3 K%), 7 BB (4.3 BB%), 1.74 ERA, 0.80 WHIP@Metsmerized #Mets #LGM pic.twitter.com/XQMKoG8RrH
— Mathew Brownstein (@MBrownstein89) December 7, 2022
The 34-year-old Raley had a career resurgence for the Rays this past season, posting a 2.68 ERA across 60 appearances. He held opposing left-handed batters to a .155/.200/.282 slash line, and he did an excellent job of limiting baserunners with a 0.969 WHIP.
Going the other way is Askew, the Mets’ 10th-round pick in the 2021 draft. Askew is just 22 years old, but he is coming off an electric year in the minors, where he split time between the St. Lucie Mets and the Brooklyn Cyclones. He compiled a 2.44 ERA across 18 appearances, eight of which were starts, and he posted an impressive 12.5 K/9.
With the Mets, Raley fills the role of southpaw reliever left by Joely Rodríguez, who signed a free-agent contract with the Boston Red Sox earlier in the offseason. Raley has had an unorthodox path to consistent major league playing time, debuting with the Chicago Cubs in 2012 before spending parts of five seasons in the KBO and ultimately returning to the U.S. in 2020. He has made at least 58 appearances in each of his last two seasons, and his 2.68 ERA in 2022 is a full two points better than his previous lowest mark, a 4.78 ERA in 2021.
Mets pitching prospect Keyshawn Askew dominated last night for the St. Lucie Mets:
5 IP, 0 H, 2 R (0 ER), 0 BB, 6 K
Here's a ridiculous strikeout to show how nasty his slider is (47% whiff rate last night) from that angle. pic.twitter.com/2FwjQ4jEGo
— Michael Mayer (@mikemayer22) April 28, 2022
Askew likely profiles as a very similar player to the high-impact lefty reliever that Raley has developed into, albeit with considerably gaudier strikeout numbers. Armed with an unorthodox and deceptive pitching motion that generates a lot of swings and misses, he would appear to be a prime candidate for the sort of magic that the Rays organization continually works with their farmhand pitchers.
The Mets might still be in play for one of the big free-agent lefty relievers like Taylor Rogers or Andrew Chafin. The bullpen was often grasping at straws when facing opposing left-handed hitters last season, particularly when Rodríguez was struggling during the early part of the year. Having two left-handed options out of the bullpen could only serve to benefit the Mets during the 2023 season, and they appear to be far from finished making moves during this already busy offseason.
