Atlanta ? The Atlanta Braves made another trade to bulk up their bullpen Friday night, acquiring reliever Danys Baez and infielder Willy Aybar from the struggling Los Angeles Dodgers for infielder Wilson Betemit.

The deal was announced after the Braves’ 6-4 loss to New York, which left them 13 games behind the Mets in the NL East. Atlanta’s best hope for making its 15th straight playoff appearance is the wild card, and they are counting on Baez to provide a reliable set-up man for new closer Bob Wickman.

The Braves began the day with a bullpen that ranked 14th in the league with a 4.76 earned-run average.

“We’re going to keep plugging away and see if we can’t get our team strong enough to win enough games to get in the postseason,” Braves general manager John Schuerholz said.

The Braves acquired Wickman, a two-time All-Star, from the Cleveland Indians last week. Baez, a right-hander, had a total of 71 saves the last two years with Tampa Bay, and the Braves tried to acquire him during the winter meetings.

Instead, he was traded to the Dodgers, where he started out as the replacement closer for Eric Gagne but couldn’t hold the job. He is 5-5 with a 4.35 ERA and nine saves.

“We like how he pitched in Tampa Bay the last two years,” Schuerholz said. “We think in the role he’s going to fill for us, he’ll be another big arm to add to our bullpen to make it stronger.”

The Braves also tried to sign Wickman during the offseason in the search for a new closer. He re-signed with the Indians, but agreed to a trade when Cleveland fell out of the race in the AL Central.