PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- The Mets addressed their left-handed relief problem in two quick strikes on Monday, acquiring Alex Torres from the Padres in exchange for pitching prospect Cory Mazzoni and a player to be named, then Jerry Blevins from the Nationals for outfielder Matt den Dekker."You've got to make moves," manager Terry Collins said. "You go in that room and you talk to these players, we were missing a piece. We talk about how successful we want to be. There was a piece we needed, and today we went out and filled that." 
Torres, 27, posted a 3.33 ERA in 70 games with the Padres last summer, demonstrating reverse platoon splits: He held right-handed hitters to a .209 batting average, the sixth-lowest mark among National League lefty relievers, but allowed left-handed batters to hit .256 against him. Torres also stranded 39 of 44 inherited runners, tied for the fourth-best rate in the Majors. Over a three-year career with the Rays and Padres, Torres has held lefties to a .216 average and righties to a .186 mark, making him more of a multi-inning option for the Mets.Outside of that, Torres is notable for two reasons. He was the first player to wear a Major League Baseball-approved padded cap in a game, and he has already been traded twice in his career -- once for three-time All-Star Scott Kazmir.The Mets see Blevins, 31, as more of a lefty-on-lefty matchup pitcher, as opposed to a multi-inning option like Torres. Posting a 4.87 ERA over 57 1/3 innings last season, Blevins struck out 66 batters in 64 games, including 40 of the 117 left-handed hitters he faced. Lefties in general hit .160 against him, with a .419 OPS.Over eight seasons with the A's and Nationals, Blevins owns a 3.58 ERA. He has appeared in 60-plus games in three straight years, and four of the last five.Collins also said Monday that Rule 5 left-hander Sean Gilmartin is a strong bet to make the Opening Day roster.Mazzoni, 25, went 7-2 with a 4.68 ERA in 14 starts over four levels last year, reaching Triple-A Las Vegas by season's end. The Mets' 16th-ranked player on MLB.com's 2015 Prospect Watch, Mazzoni made three appearances in big league camp this spring. But given his relatively low ceiling and the Mets' rotation depth around him, the team considered Mazzoni an expendable asset; rather than try and crack the Mets' bullpen this summer, he will take his mid-90s fastball, splitter and slider to San Diego.Den Dekker was ticketed for Triple-A Las Vegas, but he could crack the Nationals' Opening Day roster due to injuries to Jayson Werth and Denard Span. Known primarily for his defense, the outfielder hit .250 in 53 games for the Mets last season.
Anthony DiComo/ MLB.com
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