Former NY Mets player continues to excel in reinvented way after July trade

This season marked a major transition for former New York Mets pitcher Steven Matz. A starter for most of his career, the lefty found himself demoted to a bullpen role as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals as soon as year one of his four-year deal he signed. The Cardinals didn’t get much from him in his first three seasons. Matz was often hurt or ineffective. Sometimes, it was both.

St. Louis hardly used him as a starter this year. Just a pair of starts and another 30 relief appearances, Matz managed to put himself on the trade deadline radar in part because of an expiring contract but also due to his success. A 3.44 ERA with the Cardinals this year with a 2.90 FIP to suggest he was the victim of some bad luck, the Boston Red Sox bit at the trade deadline to seek out his services in their bullpen.

They can’t be any more pleased. Since arriving in Beantown, Matz has been amazing in a bullpen already including lefties Aroldis Chapman in the closer role and former Mets reliever Justin Wilson.

Former Mets pitcher Steven Matz has been one of the best trade deadline acquisitions

The Red Sox are in an uphill fight for the AL East, most likely to settle for one of the three Wild Card spots. Just get into the dance and you can win it all. It’s the mentality the Mets have had all year. The Red Sox, who basically copycat the Mets better than anyone, should be thinking the same.

Matz, who turned 34 back in May while effectively making every Mets fan mummify upon this realization, has been stellar for them. In 12 games and 14 innings, a pair of solo home runs are the only blemishes on his 1.29 ERA with Boston.. He has done it with a high dosage of ground balls, soft contact, and few line drives.

It’s not always about the journey but the destination. In Matz’s case, he’s getting from point A to B rather easily. His 0.71 WHIP with the Red Sox fully shows off just how rewarding this trade has been for Boston.

Prior to acquiring Gregory Soto, Matz was a logical addition for the Mets to make to their bullpen. Enticed by Soto’s dominance versus lefties over anything else, they avoided any awkwardness of Matz and Steve Cohen being in the same room together. After all, Matz's agent turned down a paycheck from Cohen back in 2021 and drew the ire of the Mets owner.