Mets Still Target J.J. Putz as a Bridge to K-Rod

Update: This trade is now official.

So you thought the Mets were out of the running for a J.J. Putz trade after signing Francisco Rodriguez. I can't say I blame you ... I thought the same thing. But apparently there are discussions of a three-team, twelve player deal were first reported by Ken Rosenthal and updated by Castro Turf:

Under terms of the deal, the Mets would get Putz, outfielder Jeremy Reed and reliever Sean Green from Seattle. The Mariners would receive reliever Aaron Heilman, outfielder Endy Chavez and first baseman Mike Carp from the Mets. They'd also get Franklin Gutierrez from the Indians and minor leaguers. The Indians would get reliever Joe Smith from the Mets and infielder Luis Valbuena from Seattle.

Double whoa on this one. It's a lot to give up for the Mets to get a guy that struggled through injury last season (and by a lot I mean Smith ... since Chavez has been invisible for the Mets lately and Aaron Heilman is ... well, Aaron Heilman), but if Putz returns to his injury free form of '07, and if he becomes cool with pitching the eighth instead of the ninth (Rosenthal's recent update is that Putz's current answer to that question was "no"), this is a huge get for them to further improve the bullpen after the acquisition of K-Rod.

As for the Mariners, it's not a stretch for Heilman to be reborn as a starter (which is what he wants) in Seattle, and eternal prospect Carp is seen as a better fit for the A.L. as a DH. Gutierrez would help defensively in right field and Chavez is a defensive wizard wherever you put him, so outfield defense wouldn't be a problem in Seattle. I for one wonder if Chavez would be able to produce offensively as an every day player. Smith would also be a decent acquisition, as he is very young and would only get better in Cleveland. All eyes would be on Putz, his willingness to pitch the eighth, and whether he could help the Mets in the late innings and preserve leads for Rodriguez better than the rag tag bunch the Mets trotted out there last season.

If he can't, let's just say the spelling of J.J.'s last name isn't helping him in New York.

Update: Mere minutes after this post, the trade became official. Wow. Now all that's left is to convince Putz that pitching the eighth inning isn't so bad ... and considering how he struggled last season, he would be wise to mute all further complaints until further notice.