Reese Kaplan -- Mets Offseason Roster Bullet List Week Sixteen

Mack's Mets will summarize players mentioned as possible new members of the team available via trade or free agency that have popped up in the media associated with them as a part of the 40 man roster.  These bullet points are not necessarily factual as if they were leaked from the Mets front office.  They comprise opinions, rumors and hypotheticals that various Mets beat writers and bloggers have felt necessary to put out into public notice.  Like EPA gas mileage ratings, take the news with a grain of salt.  We share but don’t necessarily endorse any of these transactions. 

Spring Injuries

Brandon Nimmo has had his ups and downs this preseason.  First came the plantar fasciitis and how it was progressing after a terrible 2024 season in terms of batting average.  Then came the knee pain which required a gel injection.  Both have kept him off the field defensively and limited in the amount of times he appeared as DH to test his bat.  

He this weekend did take the field for the first time but with fellow DH Jesse Winker yanked from the game after getting a rather sever calf cramp, the Mets could find themselves very short of outfielders.  Still, right now caution is the wiser option and making a veteran like Nimmo rush back would not be prudent.

Pitcher A.J. Minter has slowly worked his way back into in-game pitching opportunities.  His success in the recent past has made him a key cog for the 2025 season.  With left handed pitching options not exactly plentiful, again exercising caution until proven fully healthy makes sense. 

Another healing pitcher is Paul Blackburn whose success on the mound is actually secondary to demonstrating his health after the offseason spinal fluid issue.  Given the loss of both Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas and the slow pace given to Kodai Senga, it seemed as if Paul Blackburn was a bit more crucial to the early season Mets and his initial appearances seemed to underscore his value to the team.  

While his health appears to be good, this execution from the mound has been more reminiscent of why he was readily available at least year’s trading deadline.  Rumor now has it that while Blackburn should come north with the team, he may be the 6th starter or multi-inning reliever.

Jeff McNeil’s oblique injury opens up a second base opening day assignment to someone else.  While Brett Baty’s spring bat has pretty much assured a place on the roster, his questionable range at the much less often played second base will allow him to hold down the fort for a couple of weeks (more or less depending on McNeil’s recovery duration).  

The other options would include Luisangel Acuna who everyone is confident could represent himself well defensively and would get steady at-bats much as he did filling in for Francisco Lindor last season.  There is also an opportunity for 30 year old journeyman Donovan Walton now that Ronny Mauricio has officially been put on the slow ride back to the majors while still suffering his own health recovery. 

Luis Torrens remains the number one catching option while Francisco Alvarez heals.  That leaves Hayden Senger and Jakson Reetz vying for the 1-2 games per week Torrens might need to take off from regular catching duties.  Both of these players would only warrant major league minimum pay as opposed to other more experienced major leaguers either still available or predicted to be cut over the next 7-10 days as rosters get solidified across major league baseball. 

For Senger in particular it would be a great opportunity to play as he’s been a Whole Foods employee in the offseason while struggling to do more as a AAAA type of player whose bat has never matched his defensive chops.

Reliever Dedniel Nunez was surprisingly effective for the Mets in 2024 after spending time at the pitching lab.  How good was he?  Well, his 35 inning major league audition included 48 strikeouts, a WHIP of just 0.91 and an ERA of just 2.31.  Obviously the Mets are working him slowly back into game playing shape and he’s just recently made his first spring game appearance where he was highly effective. 

Right now the hope is that he will be ready but it’s also possible he might begin in extended spring in the warmer Florida weather while assuring he can withstand the stress on his body of pitching several times per week.

Starling Marte has had good progress on his injured knee.  A few stories popped up about his role as a defacto coach to younger players like Jose Siri and how he feels his new role as a right handed DH will allow him to ease himself back into the stress of day-to-day playing takes on a now 36 year old body.

Sean Manaea has been given clearance to begin throwing activities, so it appears that his lat problem is indeed a more minor one than what is afflicting Frankie Montas.

Spring All Stars

Already mentioned Brett Baty is not the only player performing better than expected.  Pitcher Tylor Megill has been until his last start been better than most had expected.  He had been sporting an ERA under 1.00 and appeared to have bumped him ahead of Paul Blackburn for one of the two starting pitcher slots needing to be filled.  His 3.83 spring ERA is still nearly 2 runs better than Blackburn has shown.

Perhaps the even more surprising development has been former Pirates starter/reliever Max Kranick.  He also did finally give up some runs in his last appearance, but before that had been virtually unhittable and seemed to cement his way onto the staff.  

Rumor had it that he was slated for that 6th starter/multi-inning reliever slot, but Blackburn’s backsliding may have made them switch roles.  Even with the non-perfect last appearance, Kranick has delivered a 1.93 ERA over 9.1 innings. 

Then there’s the “why did we sign him” Griffin Canning.  He’s not had all that many innings out there in Port St. Lucie but what he’s shown has been far better than anyone expected.  In his 10 innings on the mound he’s kept his ERA at 0.90 which is actually better than opening day starter Clay Holmes has done (at 1.29). 

Prospect Game

Well, there were quite a few prospect Mets on display, including Brandon Sproat, Jonah Tong and Jonathan Santucci on the mound.  Then there were offensive players Carson Benge, very young Jeremy Rodriguez and slugger Ryan Clifford offering up what they do best.  Boston Baro and (remember him?) Kevin Parada also flashed some solid hitting. While there’s a long way up the ladder from small town minor league cities to the majors, it is always exciting to catch a glimpse of the multi-season future.

The Mets’ other two-way player has been looking quite solid in Florida.  Nolan McLean is turning in his bat to concentrate on pitching alone.  His first go of it in Brooklyn showed a 2.78 ERA but things got a bit rockier as he climbed up to a higher level of competition.  His control has always been a bit of an issue and he needs to work on it as he transitions to a full time starting pitching role.  He did a three inning shutdown performance that demonstrates why he’s rated so highly.

Spring Concerns

Edwin Diaz has been a bit up and down this spring with his pitching velocity dwindlng markedly from the past.  Given the injury history the Mets have had with pitchers it is more important for a veteran like Diaz to prove health than to overdo it with pitches nearly 100 MPH. 

Mets Future Roster

Apparently while the Toronto Blue Jays have been unable to secure the services of free-agent-to-be Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., the numbers are actually not that far apart. Guerrero wants $500 million without deferrals and the Blue Jays seem willing to meet that number with them in place.  

A story appeared this week suggesting that the Mets might not want to meet the paid-in-full total either which suggests they may not be fighting tooth and nail to bring Guerrero into the first base fold for 2026.  Is that good news for Pete Alonso, Ryan Clifford or a converted first baseman in Mark Vientos or Brett Baty?

Despite the hot spring and the injuries to Jeff McNeil and Ronny Mauricio, several places are suggesting that the Mets might be better trading high on Brett Baty’s hot 2025 spring and turning infield duties over to some combination of Luisangel Acuna and Donovan Walton.  There is some wisdom here if the return is legitimate, but right now the Mets could more likely use Baty’s bat in-house. 

Former Mets Names Elsewhere in the News

J.D. Martinez would likely fill many folks’ hearts with greater comfort than still recovering Starling Marte as the right handed half of the DH roe, but it seems that other clubs including the Boston Red Sox are more likely to secure his services due to the Mets current payroll tax implications. 

Towards that end, the former Mets catcher James McCann recently signed on as a member of the Atlanta Braves minor league squad when it is the Mets in need of a multi-month backup catcher while Francisco Alvarez heals.  Granted, no one would embrace McCann with open arms, but it also suggests that the club is serious about curtailing payroll spending.