After losing left-handed reliever Josh Edgin to Tommy John surgery, the Mets are ostensibly in need of a southpaw in the bullpen. A source tells Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter) that it’s not probable that the Mets will trade right-hander Dillon Gee to land that lefty reliever they desire, though it’s also not 100% impossible.
Meanwhile, Marc Carig of Newsday (via Twitter links) says the Mets don’t seem to be in much of a panic since they’re confident in the options that will be available at the end of camp. Carig heard that the Mets wouldn’t rule out someone like Dana Eveland, who is in camp with the Red Sox now and not projected to make the team. Eveland is just one of the several names that could be available to the Mets, he says, and the larger point is that the team expects that they’ll have plenty of choices.
While Gee stands as a solid trade chip, there’s no clear overlap between that teams that have interest in Gee and teams with quality available left-handed relievers. Moving Gee, in theory, would be a great way for the Mets to use their starting pitching surplus to help supplement their relief situation. Gee is slated to start the year in the Mets’ bullpen thanks to a projected starting five of Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler, Jacob deGrom, Jon Niese and Bartolo Colon.
Mets GM Sandy Alderson recently admitted there have been few recent trade talks involving Gee. The Rangers appeared to be a logical suitor for Gee, but they apparently haven’t been in discussions with the Mets since learning that Yu Darvish will be lost for the season.
We learned on Sunday morning that Edgin, 28, opted to undergo Tommy John surgery for his elbow trouble. Edgin tossed 27 1/3 innings last season in 47 appearances, striking out 9.2 and walking only 2.0 batters per nine innings while posting a 1.32 ERA.
