Baseball

Mets trade Luke Weaver to Pirates as relief pitcher aims to keep ‘walking with Jesus’

By Kevin Mercer Aug 3, 2026
New York Mets pitcher Luke Weaver, June 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ben Jackson)

With Monday’s MLB trade deadline quickly approaching, one of the hotter names on the market was New York Mets relief pitcher Luke Weaver. The 32-year-old righty signed with the Mets in December for his 11th MLB season, but after less than a year, he’s on the move again.

With New York sitting at 47-66 and out of playoff contention, the team sent him to the Pittsburgh Pirates (56-57) with just hours left before Monday’s 6 p.m. ET deadline.

>> Subscribe to Sports Spectrum Magazine for more stories where sports & faith connect <<

After signing a two-year contract with the Mets, Weaver struggled out of the gate, limping to an ERA of 6.00 at the end of April. But he impressively turned things around, allowing only one earned run since the calendar flipped to May, now boasting a 1.84 ERA in 42 appearances (44.0 innings pitched) this season — thus making him a desirable bullpen arm for many contending teams.

Pittsburgh won that battle. The Pirates last made the playoffs in 2015, and currently sit 3.5 games out of the final NL wild-card berth.

Weaver, who played for the Yankees prior to the Mets, enjoyed his time in the New York spotlight. The Big Apple fed his energy, he said. After a victory with the Yankees in the 2024 ALDS, he compared himself to a “ferocious jungle cat.” It’s a pitching demeanor the former-starter-turned-reliever hopes to bring to his new team.

“That’s just my personality on the mound,” he told The Mirror last week. “It’s different than my daily life, my daily walk. It’s almost like an alter ego that comes on. It’s matched by the intensity of what the game provides in those high-leverage moments.”

Weaver had the opportunity to play in perhaps the most high-leverage moment of any MLB season with the Yankees in 2024, when his team faced the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series, where L.A. came out on top in the seven-game series, 4-1. Weaver pitched five innings over four World Series contests, allowing one hit and one walk with no earned runs.

A few months later, on a January 2025 episode of the Sports Spectrum Podcast, Weaver was asked what it was like to take the mound under the brightest lights in the sport.

“What a really cool time,” he said. “I feel like it came at the perfect time, honestly, because there had been a lot of failures and a lot of grinding — I guess we can call it — to get to that point. It felt like there was a lot of peace and a lot of appreciation for where I was.”

That peace, he said, was the peace of Christ.

“Being a follower of Jesus gives a lot of foundational strength,” he said. “It gives a lot of reference to understand how to navigate through those moments. … God has the plan. He’s already written it out.”

Weaver has spoken openly about his faith in Christ throughout his lengthy stay in the majors. He’s appeared on the Sports Spectrum Podcast on multiple occasions, worn a “Bible glove” while pitching, traveled to Haiti on a service trip, and posted about Christ on social media. He declares he’s a “follower of Jesus” in his Instagram bio.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Luke Weaver (@dreamweava7)


On the podcast, Weaver was asked about his Bible glove.

“It’s a way that I’m trying to use my platform to further the Gospel,” he explained, “and my walk with Jesus.”

“When we talk about the foundation from God and walking with Jesus, that is what keeps it level,” he said. “Because I know that, in a moment’s notice, I can really bring a crowd together who might love me in that moment, or I could do the exact opposite and be the most hated guy on the planet.”

Weaver will look to join the Pirates as soon as possible in Milwaukee, where they begin a four-game series Monday night. Then on Friday, he’ll arrive in Pittsburgh with his new teammates and prepare to face his former team, as the Mets arrive for a three-game series.

Such is the life in Major League Baseball, and through it all, Weaver knows God holds him secure. He’s built his life on the solid rock of Christ, and Christ cannot be shaken.

Tags:

Sports Spectrum
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

You can adjust all of your cookie settings by navigating the tabs on the left hand side.