Jaso to M's

[love_that_reefer]

Per MLBTR

The Mariners have acquired catcher John Jaso from the Rays in exchange for right-handed pitcher Josh Lueke and a player to be named later or cash considerations, according to a team press release.

“John gives us a left-handed hitting catcher with some big league time who is still young,” Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik said in the release. “His left-handed bat will be a nice compliment to our right-handed hitting group. He’s a tough kid with postseason experience and should be a nice fit with us.”

Last season marked Jaso's first full campaign in the Major Leagues. The 28-year-old hit .224/.298/.354 with five homers in 273 plate appearances.

Lueke, who turns 27 on December 5th, made 25 appearances for the Mariners last season and posted a 6.06 ERA with 8.0 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9. In 42 career Triple-A games, Lueke owns an ERA of 2.56 with 8.0 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9.

Looks like the M's got a better pairing to go along with Olivo in 2012. Rays get a reliever who can miss bats and I'm sure the Rays can turn him into a quality piece of the bullpen.

[catman]

Good move by both teams. Jaso won't win any awards, but is decent defensively.

[Kingdom]

Seattle must be used to catchers that can't hit by now?

[realmofotalk]

Between the two players, Jaso has more upside, unless the Rays guess correctly that he's already on the downside.

[love_that_reefer]

I'd say Lueke has more upside. Rays have a knack of turning guys like him into decent relievers. He definitely has strikeout ability and could be more useful than a backup catcher.

[Porter]

Lueke is erratic with his control but his stuff is filthy. I dont like the deal at all. They should keep Josh Bard and get better production that way.

[Foster]

Which guy went to jail? Yeah, he plays for the losing team in this deal.

Rays also picked up Jose Molina to help out with the catching situation.