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The New York Mets had to put a desirable player on waivers, and the Seattle Mariners pounced.
After right-handed pitcher Cooper Criswell was designated for assignment on Wednesday night as the Mets finalized the trade to acquire Freddy Peralta and Tobias Myers from the Milwaukee Brewers, the Mariners skipped the line to claim him off waivers.
According to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers, the Mariners and Mets agreed to a trade Friday to send Criswell to Seattle. The Mets will receive cash in the deal, according to Shannon Drayer of Seattle Sports.
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Cooper Criswell is a hot commodity this winter
Criswell, a five-year major league veteran who most recently pitched for the Boston Red Sox, will maintain his spot on the 40-man roster. He is out of options, so if he does not make the team out of spring training, he will be exposed to waivers.
He’s never thrown 100 innings in a major league season (99 1/3 was his high) and his career ERA sits at 4.48, but Criswell is the type of arm teams like to have in the organization. He can eat innings as a spot starter or a bulk reliever, and he seems to have gotten comfortable bouncing around between Triple-A and the majors.
Though he made just seven appearances for Boston in the majors this past season (his lowest since 2022), Criswell made his one start count. He pitched seven innings and allowed just one run against the Houston Astros, a team the Red Sox finished ahead of by two games in the year-end standings, in the first game after the trade deadline.
Early in the offseason, the 29-year-old signed a major league deal with the Red Sox for $800,000, which was a way to guard against the odds of the Red Sox losing him if he was dumped from the roster some point and cleared waivers. As it turned out, though, he was destined to be picked up off waivers.
The Mets claimed Criswell on Dec. 5, the day after Boston designated him for assignment following a five-player trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He lasted just 48 days in the Mets organization, and now will get a shot to compete for a role with the Mariners in spring training.
Criswell was also a two-year teammate of new Mariners outfielder Rob Refsnyder in Boston, so he’ll have at least one familiar face to greet him in the spring training clubhouse.
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