Mets agree to deal with lefty reliever Aaron Loup
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The Mets and lefty reliever Aaron Loup have agreed to a deal, SNY's Andy Martino reports.
The Mets were searching for a southpaw in the bullpen after former target Brad Hand went to the Washington Nationals on a one-year deal where he will get the opportunity to close -- a chance not likely in Queens. Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reported the Mets were "zeroing in" on Loup.
Prior to Loup's deal, the only two left-handed relief options on the Mets' current 40-man roster were Thomas Szapucki and Daniel Zamora. Szapucki has not played above Double-A, and Zamora did not appear with the big league club in 2020 -- and has tossed just 17.2 MLB innings.
Loup should be a big help. Not only will he fill a huge hole for a lefty reliever, but he produced a 2.52 ERA (seven earned runs/25 innings) for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2020, along with a 0.84 WHIP.
The Mets also signed Trevor May earlier this offseason to help out a bullpen with Edwin Diaz, Dellin Betances, Jeurys Familia, and potentially Seth Lugo.