Rays Trade Relief Pitcher With Strong Strikeout Numbers to Mets for Cash

Which relief pitcher did the Tampa Bay Rays trade to the New York Mets?

Jul 13, 2022; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of a New York Mets hat and glove in the dugout against the Atlanta Braves in the eighth inning at Truist Park. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

With the offseason getting going for the Tampa Bay Rays, they have already started to make some moves this winter. 

Coming into the offseason, the Rays were certainly a team to watch with a number of potential directions that they could go in. While the end of the 2025 campaign might not have been ideal, this was a team that had quite a bit of success early on. 

Unfortunately, the offense struggled a bit in the second half, and the team sold off some veterans at the trade deadline. This resulted in the franchise finishing eight games under the .500 mark, but they were still able to have a positive run differential overall. 

Because of the success in the first half of last season, there is reason to believe that Tampa Bay can be a contender in 2026. However, while that might be possible, there are a lot of potential moves that the team might make this winter which could either help or hurt those chances. 

According to Anthony DiComo, the New York Mets have recently traded for right-handed pitcher Joey Gerber, who was just designated for assignment by the Rays. In return, Tampa Bay will receive cash considerations. 

The Mets have acquired reliever Joey Gerber from the Rays for cash, per source.

Gerber, 28, appeared in two games for Tampa Bay last season. He spent most of the year at Triple-A, where he produced a 6.23 ERA but did strike out 54 batters over 43 1/3 innings.

— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) November 4, 2025

Gerber is a former eight-round pick of the Seattle Mariners and has been chiefly a minor leaguer throughout his career. Overall, in his career in the minors, the relief pitcher has totaled a 3.47 ERA in 153 innings pitched. Despite not having much experience in the Majors, the Rays did give him a chance in 2025. 

While the sample size is tiny, he totaled a 2.08 ERA in 4.1 innings pitched. At 28 years old, Gerber isn’t considered to be a prospect anymore, but he does have some potential that New York might be interested in. 

In the minors, with a decent career ERA, Gerber does feature a strong strikeout rate of 12.2 per nine innings. That is likely what got the interest of the Mets to get a deal done, and they will be seeking to get the most out of him in their system. 

New York has done a good job in recent years of helping older pitchers succeed, and the right-hander will be a potential project for them this spring. For Tampa Bay, they are already showing to be quite active this winter, and that is likely going to be a trend that continues.