The Mets just traded Kris Benson (and his wife) to the Baltimore Orioles for setup man Jorge Julio. This move comes two days after the Mets re-signed Victor Zambrano and brought in free agent righty pitcher Yusaku Irika from Japan to fill the spot starter/long reliever role for the team. I suppose the Benson move signals the Mets' intention to have Aaron Heilman join the rotation behind Pedro Martinez, Tom Glavine, Steve Trachsel and the aforementioned Zambrano.
To be perfectly honest, while I'm all for opening up a spot for a potential stud like Heilman, the Mets have thinned out their starting rotation to the point of worry. Considering Trachsel missed more than half of 2005 following back surgery, I'm not sure why the Mets needed to unload a starter who could've been a perfectly acceptable #3 pitcher for them. Now the Mets are teeming with bullpen depth (Wagner, Julio, Bradford, Schmoll, Sanchez, Bell, Ring, Iriki) but a shaky starting rotation. Unless they're planning on moving some of this depth for another starting pitcher, I would be worried if I were a Mets fan.
To the Mets, I'm giving an incomplete grade until I see them move a reliever for some rotation insurance. To the Orioles, I give them a solid B; even if Benson is slightly overpaid, he is still under contract for two more seasons and he was excellent in June/July 2005 before slipping. With Mazzone guiding his career, I like Benson as a sleeper in 2006.
To be perfectly honest, while I'm all for opening up a spot for a potential stud like Heilman, the Mets have thinned out their starting rotation to the point of worry. Considering Trachsel missed more than half of 2005 following back surgery, I'm not sure why the Mets needed to unload a starter who could've been a perfectly acceptable #3 pitcher for them. Now the Mets are teeming with bullpen depth (Wagner, Julio, Bradford, Schmoll, Sanchez, Bell, Ring, Iriki) but a shaky starting rotation. Unless they're planning on moving some of this depth for another starting pitcher, I would be worried if I were a Mets fan.
To the Mets, I'm giving an incomplete grade until I see them move a reliever for some rotation insurance. To the Orioles, I give them a solid B; even if Benson is slightly overpaid, he is still under contract for two more seasons and he was excellent in June/July 2005 before slipping. With Mazzone guiding his career, I like Benson as a sleeper in 2006.
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