Heilman Traded to Cubs

The Seattle Mariners have traded former Mets pitcher Aaron Heilman to the Cubs in exchange for pitching prospect Garret Olson and shortstop Ronny Cedeno.

Heilman was traded from the Mets to Seattle earlier this offseason in the trade that brought J.J. Putz to New York. Heilman owns a home in a Chicago suburb and will likely compete with Sean Marshall for the fifth spot in the Cubs rotation.

Mets Acquire Putz, Solidify Bullpen

Late Wednesday night the Mets picked up another piece for their bullpen puzzle. Former Mariners closer J.J. Putz is a now a member of the New York Mets.

The trade, which suddenly emerged on the forefront of rumors at about 9 P.M. eastern time Wednesday, also involved the Cleveland Indians.

The Mets have already signed free agent closer Francisco Rodriguez, so Putz will serve as the 8th inning setup man. This now turns the Mets bullpen from the worst in the majors to one of the best.

Putz struggled with injuries last season but previously was dominate for Seattle. In 2007, Putz posted a 1.38 ERA with a 0.70 WHIP and 82 strikeouts against just 13 walks (10.30 K/9, 6.30 K/BB).

The 6-foot-5, 250 pound Putz is under contract for 2009 and has an option for 2010.

Here are the details of the three team, twelve player trade:

Mets Receive:

RHP J.J. Putz

RHP Sean Green

OF Jeremy Reed (all from Seattle)

Mariners Receive:

OF Franklin Gutierrez (from Cleveland)

RHP Aaron Heilman (from New York)

OF Endy Chavez (from NYM)

1B Mike Carp (from NYM/Class AA)

LHP Jason Vargas (from NYM/AAA)

RHP Maikel Cleto (from NYM/A)

OF Ezequiel Carrera (from NYM/A)

Indians Receive:

RHP Joe Smith (from NYM)

INF Luis Valbuena (from Seattle/AAA)

Mets fans will be sorry to see Endy Chavez leave, meanwhile I'm sure many of those same fans are at Aaron Heilman's house now ready to take him to the airport. More on this and analysis of the trade will come later.