The Mets still stand with several vacancies on the 40-man roster along with some who are there that face tenuous holds at best. Bear in mind there will be some movements made once the 2025 season approaches as players get cut, traded or move onto the 60-day IL. Given those facts, David Stearns has quite a task ahead of him trying to figure out how to build out the remainder of the top 40 players to be a part of the New York Mets organization. Please bear in mind that Stearns inherited both the major and minor league rosters. Yes, he’s made some additions already, but as witnessed by the fates of several players he picked last year, he’s not blindly loyal to what his thinking was at the time the newcomers arrived.
Let’s take a look at a the possible fate of a rocky eight:
Brett Baty — What can you say about the job done by Mark Vientos last year and the 2023 season produced by Ronny Mauricio which make Baty’s best efforts look fairly weak by comparison? Yes, he was a high draft pick but as evidenced by countless examples all over baseball the most highly regarded players don’t necessarily pan out as anticipated. Baty’s has enough impressive performance in the minors prior to 2024 that a club seeking a change of venue type of trade might want to give him a shot to play right away.
Starling Marte — It’s really hard to look at Marte as the same fragile but solid all around player who performed upon his arrival in 2022. The following year was a lost one due to more injuries and despite strong base running in 2024, it would appear he plays older than he looks. His fielding which had been very strong has deteriorated as well. The availability of him being in the lineup is inconsistent yet if the Mets pay down his final year of his deal they might likely find a taker.
Jeff McNeil — How many chances do you keep giving the guy who earned his current contract after securing an NL batting title? Between injuries and uneven hitting he’s made his positional versatility his best attribute rather than his previous command of the bat. He’s another one who would need a buy-down on his remaining contract unless the Mets were engaged in a similarly expensive player from another club which would not require creative accounting.
Tylor Megill — The key things to remember about Megill is that he’s out of options. That means he’s on the roster or becomes a free agent at the end of Spring Training. Given the Mets’ collective dearth of both starting and relief pitching you would think he’s more secure than the others on this list, but the fact is that like Brett Baty he’s never put together the major league consistency the club hoped he’d deliver. He could be a piece of a package deal and allow another club to cross its fingers regarding which Megill is taking the mound for them each day.
Dylan Covey — None of us in the baseball media can hope to claim the same level of expertise as the team’s front office and scouting departments, but a look at Covey’s numbers really make you wonder what the club was thinking. He has a batting average against over .280 and his WHIP is atrocious. Yes, he was a Stearns selection, but the experience during his front office era is how you play is whether or not you stay.
Luis De Los Santos — Here’s another player young enough to be a AAA stash in the event injury forces a replacement level player to make it to Citifield, yet his output doesn’t shine in any aspect. There’s some power and some speed but the batting average has not been outstanding and he’s on an uphill right now to prove to the organization that he belongs.
Paul Blackburn — The midyear acquisition had a few good starts before his health started failing which eventually required time in an operating room to try to get him ready to play again midway into the 2025 season. For his career he’s a more expensive version of Tylor Megill with a career ERA of 4.85 to accompany a losing 22-28 record, a .279 BAA and a WHIP of 1.41. By comparison the one year younger Megill has a career ERA of 4.60, a .500 record, a .260 BAA and a career WHIP of 1.39. The difference here is salary where Blackburn must be paid $3.45 million for his 2024 effort whereas Megill earned under $800K. He’s not four times the pitcher but being injured meant the Mets would DFA him or keep paying him while he heals. They opted for the latter.
Christian Scott — He was cruising through the minors with a career ERA of just 3.19 when he made it as a callup to the Mets in 2024. He was off and on with good games and bad games before being diagnosed as needing Tommy John Surgery. He’d shown good control and a solid WHIP though the ERA crept up to 4.56 as an NL rookie. He’ll likely miss all of 2025 in rehab.
There are a great many other fringe players who likely will hang around like Max Kranick and Huascar Brazoban who likely won’t be in danger of losing roster spots but are not being counted upon to be difference makers. Anyone you feel will be gone?
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