Mets win pursuit of Benson

By Jim Callis
July 30, 2004

With the Diamondbacks not certain to trade Randy Johnson, Kris Benson was arguably the top starting pitcher on the trade market. Several clubs pursued Benson, with the Mets closing a three-team deal for him on Friday. The Mets received Benson and Double-A second baseman Jeff Keppinger from the Pirates, with Pittsburgh getting Ty Wigginton and Double-A righthander Matt Peterson from the Mets, plus third baseman Jose Bautista from the Royals. In exchange for Bautista, Kansas City obtained Triple-A catcher Justin Huber from New York.

Benson was one of two starters acquired by the Mets on Friday, joining Victor Zambrano. A 29-year-old righthander, Benson has rebounded from Tommy John surgery in 2001 and mediocre seasons in 2002-03. The No. 1 overall pick in the 1996 draft, he has gone 8-8, 4.22 in 20 starts, including a 4-4, 3.01 mark in his last 10. He has a 83-44 strikeout-walk ratio in 132 innings, with opponents batting .272 with seven homers against him. Benson has four pitches that all rate as above-average at times: a low-90s fastball, plus a curveball, slider and changeup. He's making $6.1 million in the final year of a four-year, $13.8 million contract, and will become a free agent at season's end. His career record is 43-49, 4.26 in 126 starts.

Wigginton, 26, became superfluous at third base for the Mets once they promoted stud prospect David Wright from Triple-A. He has hit .285/.334/.487 with 12 homers and 42 RBIs in 86 games this year, also seeing some action at second base. Wigginton is a decent big league regular at the hot corner. He won't hit for a high average and draws just a fair amount of walks, but he has 20-homer power and won't cost the Pirates much because he won't be eligible for arbitration until after the 2005 season. He runs well for a third baseman and is a solid defender. He has career totals of .270/.327/.440 with 29 homers, 131 RBIs and 20 steals in 288 games.

By giving up Peterson in this deal and Scott Kazmir in the Zambrano trade, the Mets discarded their top two pitching prospects on the same day. Peterson, 22, was a 2000 second-round pick out of a Louisiana high school. He missed his last start at Double-A Binghamton with a strained oblique muscle, but has gone 6-4, 3.27 in 19 appearances (18 starts). He owns a 90-45 K-BB ratio in 105 innings, while opponents have hit .253 with 11 homers. Peterson's best pitch is a true 12-6 curveball, and he also throws a low-90s fastball and a promising changeup. He has a career record of 29-17, 3.33 in 86 minor league contests.

Bautista, 23, returns to the Pirates, who signed him as a draft-and-follow out of Chipola (Fla.) JC after taking him in the 20th round in 2000. He has been on a wild ride since the end of last season, going to the Orioles in December's major league Rule 5 draft, to the Devil Rays on waivers in early June, to the Royals in a cash transaction in late June and now back to Pittsburgh. Per the Rule 5 guidelines, he has spent the entire year in the majors, hitting .208/.283/.229 with two RBIs and 22 strikeouts in 48 at-bats over 41 games. Bautista has a higher ceiling than Wigginton. His best tools are his quick bat, power potential and strong arm. The Pirates now can return him to the minors, where he has batted .287/.385/.452 with 24 homers and 110 RBIs in 249 games.

Huber, 22, signed with the Mets out of Australia in 2000. He quickly emerged as one of the minors' better catching prospects, though his star has dimmed somewhat as scouts have questioned whether he'll provide enough defense to catch regularly in the majors. He has enough bat to hit for average with 20-plus homers annually, but he's mechanical behind the plate and sloppy footwork detracts from his arm, which is average at best. Huber's plate discipline has taken a step forward this year, as he has hit .270/.402/.473 with 13 homers and 44 RBIs in 88 games, mostly in Double-A. He has thrown out just 14 of 72 basestealers (19 percent) in 2004. In 368 minor league games, he has hit .279/.387/.466 with 49 homers and 240 RBIs.

Keppinger, 24, was a fourth-round pick out of Georgia in 2001, when he homered twice off Mark Prior in a College World Series game. He was having a career year at Double-A Altoona, hitting .334/.384/.409 with one homer, 33 RBIs and 10 steals (in 16 attempts) over 82 games. He has been one of the toughest hitters in the minor leagues to strike out, with just 17 whiffs in 323 at-bats. Keppinger may not do enough to merit playing every day in the majors. He's a career .307 hitter, but doesn't draw enough walks (.361 on-base percentage) or have enough extra-base pop (.411) to contribute much else offensively if he doesn't hit for a high average. He's an average runner and adequate defender.