Jeurys Familia traded to Athletics

Good day, baseball fans. At least, it was a good day for me, sipping my coffee on the front porch out here in the wild west of Colorado. As for Mets matters, my genteel southern upbringing would typically lead me away from such talk, but this is fantasy baseball and we have to tend to our fake teams even though it might remind Mets fans of how sorry their lot is.

The Mets traded closer Jeurys Familia to the Athletics for a pair of prospects and some international slot money. 26-year-old reliever Bobby Wahl is hitting triple digits in Triple-A this year while 24-year-old third baseman William Toffey is slashing .244/.357/.384 in High-A. Neither are of concern to our fake teams just yet, though it does appear this trade is squarely in the favor of Oakland (feel free to convince me otherwise in the comments).

Only four teams in the Majors have a worse bullpen ERA than the Mets (4.72) so it’s safe to say the proverbial towel has been thrown in by that “organization.” The Mets (40-55) are tied for last place in the NL East and are playing for pride at this point. On some level, it is encouraging that they aren’t lying to themselves anymore. They are not going to contend this season, and they should be making moves with next season in mind. I would expect a few more moves before the trade deadline, with perhaps Asdrubal Cabrera the next veteran to go.

Anyway, Jeurys Familia’s 2.88 ERA is far better than what you’d infer if you were just browsing along on Twitter. Too many Mets fans are denigrating this guy, and I suppose it’s because they are bitter and need a scapegoat. Familia has blown four saves this year, but he’s also closed out 17 games.

Under the hood looks pretty solid, too. Familia induces plenty of ground balls (50.5%) and gets enough strikeouts (25.1%) while allowing an average amount of free passes (8.2%). I don’t see what there is to hate, honestly...I mean, he’s third ALL-TIME in saves for the Mets franchise.

The fallout is that Familia is no longer worth rostering in your typical redraft format. It’s possible that he’s the third option for saves in Oakland, given the dominance of Blake Treinen and Lou Trivino. Of course, if your league counts holds then you should...hold him.

As for New York, the Mets bullpen is about to be hurting. If you’re speculating, you can look to Robert Gsellman, who threw 44 pitches last night (Friday) in a two-inning save over the Yankees. Given his workload, don’t be alarmed if Anthony Swarzak nabs any ninth-inning work on Saturday. Gsellman is the clear add in my opinion. Of course, it’s the Mets, so who knows?

This is an exciting real-life move, as Familia joins an upstart Athletics team that is 55-43 on the season and 7-3 over their last 10 games. The Athletics already rank eighth bullpen ERA, so this move makes a strong point even stronger. Shorten that game up, Oakland.

In summation, keep Familia in holds leagues. Keep Trivino in holds leagues. Blake Treinen is still the man for saves in Oakland. Add Gsellman if you’re speculating. And if you’re REALLY speculating, you can add Anthony Swarzak. That is all that I have on this situation. Athletics win, and Familia owners lose. And Mets lose.