The New York Mets helped set the market for relief pitchers at this year’s trade deadline. Soon-to-be free agent Gregory Soto was acquired on Friday afternoon in a swap with the Baltimore Orioles. The Mets will send them a pair of pitching prospects, Wellington Aracena and Cameron Foster.
The quick action by the Mets (and the Orioles for that matter) tells us a lot about how much it’s going to take to acquire pitchers of different abilities. A rental the Mets could always bring back again the same way they did with Ryne Stanek in the offseason, Soto’s presence should have fans feeling one of two ways with very little room for the in between.