Mariners send Putz to Mets

LAS VEGAS – For the first time in days, a relaxed J.J. Putz felt confident he wasn’t going to be traded.

Instead of fretting by the phone, the Mariners’ closer decided to invite some friends over and work on a car outside his Arizona home. Little did he know that hundreds of miles away, the Mariners were putting the finishing touches on a blockbuster, 12-player deal involving three teams that would send Putz to the New York Mets.

Putz won’t be alone, as outfielder Jeremy Reed and reliever Sean Green will be joining him in New York, while minor-league second baseman Luis Valbuena heads off to the Cleveland Indians. In return, the Mariners scored Indians right fielder Franklin Gutierrez, a defensive whiz with big power potential, as the centerpiece of the package.

The Mariners also get outfielder Endy Chavez, pitcher Aaron Heilman, Class AA first-base prospect Mike Carp and three other minor-leaguers – right-handed pitcher Maikel Cleto, outfielder Ezequiel Carrera and left-handed pitcher Jason Vargas from the Mets. Cleveland also gets pitcher Joe Smith from New York.

Putz didn’t suspect anything until his wife walked to the door of their home and called out “Looks like we’re going to New York!”

A puzzled Putz, figuring it was more rumors, checked his cellphone and saw he’d just missed a call from Mariners general manager Jack Zduriencik.

“I thought, ‘Uh-oh. Whoo-boy, this could be it,’ ” Putz said.

And it was.

Before long, Putz was on the phone with Mets GM Omar Minaya, who welcomed him to the team. Putz will be going to New York not as a closer, but as the set-up man to newly-acquired Francisco Rodriguez, inked earlier Wednesday for three years, $37 million.

It’s rare for an established closer like Putz – arguably better than K-Rod when healthy – to be placed into an eighth-inning role in his prime.

But Putz took it all in stride.

“It’s a new challenge and I’m excited about it,” Putz said. “I’m going to a new team that’s going to be very competitive. Frankie’s a great closer and with Sean Green going as well, we should have a great bullpen.”

The Mariners should also have a vastly improved defensive outfield with the addition of Gutierrez, who broke in with the Indians during their 2007 playoff push as an injury replacement for Trot Nixon. Gutierrez impressed the Indians so much that they made him their everyday right fielder to start 2008.

But Gutierrez stumbled at the plate, posting just a .248 average with eight homers and 41 runs batted in, with a .691 on-base-plus slugging percentage, over 399 at-bats. But he’s still young at only 25 and can play both right field and center with above-average skill.

The Mariners hope he shows the promise he displayed in the minors and with the Indians during that 2007 stretch run.

Zduriencik had said earlier in the evening that he felt a deal might happen Wednesday. Zduriencik had been discussing a three-way Putz deal involving the Tigers and Tampa Bay Rays earlier in the day.

But that fell apart, supposedly when the Tigers balked at including outfielder Matt Joyce in their part of the package.