Rays Get: Lucas Duda (17 HR, 37 RBI, .246 AVG, 0 SB, 127 wRC+, Age 31)
Mets Get: Drew Smith (1-2, 1.60 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, 7 SV, 40/9 K/BB at High Class A, AA, and AAA, Age 23)
This is a simple rental deal, with the Rays adding a power bat for a couple months in exchange for a power arm. Lucas Duda is an underrated player, as you can look at his .246 batting average, 25.1% strikeout rate, and mediocre defense and dislike him. However, he has a 12.7% walk rate that leads to a solid .347 on-base percentage, and his 38 extra base hits this year (21 doubles, 17 homers) give him a .532 slugging percentage, enough to push his wRC+ to 127, meaning he creates 27% more runs than the average hitter. The Rays, at 53-50, are quietly creeping up on the Red Sox and the Yankees in the AL East, and Duda's power will be helpful in getting them over the hump. He has played his entire eight year career with the Mets, crushing 125 home runs while slashing .246/.343/.457 over 760 games. He actually leaves New York seventh on the Mets' all time home run list, behind only Darryl Strawberry (252), David Wright (242), Mike Piazza (220), Howard Johnson (192), Dave Kingman (154), and Carlos Beltran (149).
Drew Smith is an intriguing young reliever out of Dallas Baptist University, pushing his fastball into the upper 90's' and racking up strikeouts in bunches in the minors. Smith actually began the season with High Class A Lakeland, the Tigers' Florida State League affiliate, and has bounced around quite a bit, finding himself traded to the Rays and pitching for High Class A Charlotte, AA Montgomery, and AAA Durham at various points during the season. Overall, he has a 1.60 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP between those four teams, primarily in High Class A, striking out 40 and walking just nine in 45 innings. The 6'2" righty will presumably start off with AA Binghamton, and he could be in the Mets' bullpen by the end of the season if all goes well in the upper minors.
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