Mets trade for World Series-winning pitcher

A former World Series champion is joining Grimace’s party in New York.

The New York Mets announced on Tuesday that they have acquired veteran reliever Phil Maton in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays. In return, the Mets will be sending either a player to be named later or cash considerations back to Tampa Bay. New York is also designating fellow pitcher Joey Lucchesi for assignment in a corresponding move.

The righty Maton, 31, is an eight-year veteran who had the best run of his career with the Houston Astros from 2021 to '23. In 2022, the year that the Astros won the World Series, Maton posted a 3.84 ERA with 73 strikeouts over 67 regular-season appearances. While Maton missed the entire 2022 postseason thanks to an off-field injury, he still got a ring from the Astros when they went on to win it all.

This season for Tampa Bay, Maton mainly worked out of a setup role, submitting an ERA of 4.58 with 30 strikeouts in 40 appearances. Although those numbers don’t quite pop off the page, the Mets will take a chance on him (a little over a month after they had to banish another righty reliever).