Mets Roster Central 2026 at Grand Central

[Edgy MD]

You thought the purging and cleansing was over two days ago — or maybe you didn't — so maybe you were wrong and maybe you were right. Maybe you thought the next transactions you'd see were the Mets reloading bullpen arms for the series in San Francisco. But still assembling the lower-level rosters, the powers that be were left to give bad news to a handful of guys who thought they had made it out of Spring Training alive, only to see their seasons end before they began.

Transactions, 4/1/2026

 

GOING
Released	Released	Released	Released
Relief Pitchers	Relief Pitchers	Catcher	Infielders
Robinson Martinez	Trey McGough	José Aular	Nick Roselli
R/R DoB: 1998-03-20 High Level: AA (2025)	L/L DoB: 1998-03-29 High Level: AAA (2024)	R/R DoB: 2004-01-02 High Level: AA (2025)	L/R DoB: 2003-03-31 High Level: A+ (2025)

There is certainly a mixed bag here.  Trey McGough is certainly the big surprise.  The lefty had had an impressive minor-league career going through age 25, only to see things blow up in his face just as he was looking for his first big-league callup.  Things went so sideways that McGough announced his retirement last May, only to get offered a rare two-year minor-league deal by the Mets in January.

Presumably, they wanted to give him time in the lab to find himself again.  But time has a way of running out real fast, and I guess the Mets are on some kind of hook for a two years of minor-league salary, unless there is some kind of out if a guy doesn't make an Opening Day roster.

There's an out, isn't there?  There's always an out.

Nick Roselli is a tragedy of a different brand.  A homeboy out of Levittown, NY, Nick played his college ball for SUNY Binghamton, and after a season-plus in the Mets system, was looking to make the Binghamton Rumble Ponies roster this summer, and go back and stick it to all those professors who said he'd never amount to nothing.  That's the way we imagine things go at Mets Roster Central, anyhow.

Home cooking doesn't always work out the way you want, anyhow, as Nick showed when his defensible .233 batting average for St. Lucie plummeted to an eye-opening .136 for Brooklyn.  That was over the course of 139 plate appearances, and those are, sadly, the sort of numbers that get a dude released.

Adding to the Roselli-related challenges is that the bad news is reported the day after his birthday, and one imagines he got the news on the actual birthday.  In fact, three of our four releaserinos here have just recently celebrated the anniversary of their nativity.  (Two of them were born a day apart!)

Best wishes if you are reading, Nick.  There are always great things ahead for a Binghamton Bearcat.

Jose Aular is an organizational catcher.  In four seasons of backing up Christopher Suero (among others), he never appeared enough to garner as many as 10 RBI.  A great guy to have around for Spring Training, but too redundant as the start of the season reveals a glut of catchers at the upper levels.

Robinson Martinez had been a refugee from the Orioles system that the Mets picked up in December and have put down just as fast.  Martinez has a track record of holding his own against high-level competition in the Dominican Summer League, only to find his game still has rough spots when he comes back to stateside affiliated ball.

It is too bad winter has to end, sometimes.  That doesn't seemingly make sense, but the legacy April Fool's Day suggests it is nonetheless true.

[Edgy MD]

Minor-league players jettisoned from the organization?  Players from three years ago finally retiring?  NOPE!  Mets Roster Central is here with powerful, relevant roster updates about the most powerful relevant player on their roster

Transactions, 4/6/2026

GOING	NEUTRAL	GOING
Placed on 10-Day IL, Retroactive to 2026-04-04, with Strained Right Calf	Transferred from Infield	Promoted from Syracuse
Outfielders	Outfielders	Infielders
Juan Soto	Brett Baty	Ronny Mauricio
L/L DoB: 36093 High Level: MLB (2025)	L/R DoB: 1999-11-13 High Level: MLB (2025)	S/R DoB: 2001-04-04 High Level: MLB (2025)

It's nobody's favorite hot, sinewy dose of reality, but you can put all the biggest resources to bear in securing the services of the most gifted players, but whether you wind up with Babe Ruth or Joe Shabotnik, the two of them will be worth exactly the same on the Injured List.  So chase that shiny free agent, sure — and the Mets invested $765 million in chasing Juan Soto down — but the winning move is always depth, depth, depth. 

And then, maybe, you might want to add a little depth.

While Juan's role in left field will be covered by some combination of Brett Baty, Jared Young, and Tyrone Taylor — which will almost certainly mean more opportunities for Mark Vientos at first and DH — his spot on the roster goes to Ronny Mauricio.  It would be great to see delayed-launch opportunities be the key to Ronny establishing himself in the bigs, at it seemingly has been for Baty and Vientos, but right now, his role will seemingly be backing up at second, third, and short — and the guys there haven't been yielding any innings to anybody, so if this calf injury of Juan's is as quick to heal as we all hope it is, Ronny will likely have to make the most of very few opportunities.

Give 'em Hell, Ronny!

  

[Cowtipper]

Mauricio just turned 25. I'd say it's make or break time for him. 

[Lefty Specialist]

He's not going to get much playing time, so it won't be make or break.  Would have preferred leaving him in Syracuse.

[Cowtipper]

Whether he's with them or not, it's make or break. Him not being with them itself is a 'break.' 

[Edgy MD]

I don't think there is any evidence that he will be made or broken at the end of Soto's IL assignment, although I confess I really don't know what those words mean in this context.

[Edgy MD]

As the Mets' lineup continues to struggle, they address their issues in classic fashion — by futzing around with the bullpen.  Oddly enough, they seem to be cornering the market on former Braves bullpen mainstays to add to their collection of Yankee relievers.

Transactions, 4/6/2026

COMING

Signed away from SEA to Minor-League Contract, Placed on Syracuse Development List

Relief Pitchers

Luke Jackson

R/R DoB: 1991-08-24 High Level: MLB (2025)

Luke Jackson was an indifferent piece of the Braves pen back in the teens, but then had an out-of-this world season in 2021.  He paid for that by missing 2022 with UCL surgery and has bounced around the league since, with occasional success.

That 2021 season helped the Braves to a championship, giving Jackson one more reason to be joyful following the birth of his son a few weeks earlier, leading Luke to celebrate following Game Three inviting his wife Corrine and baby onto the field for a post-game cuddle.

Transactions, 4/9/2026

 

COMING

Sent to St. Lucie on Rehab Assignment

Relief Pitchers

A.J. Minter

L/L DoB: 1993-09-02 High Level: MLB (2025)

Former Braves relief standby #2 is AJ Minter, who gave the 2025 Mets a few weeks of effective bullpenning before going down with a left lat strain that led to season-ending surgery.  Mets Roster Central's mindset says that strains aren't supposed to lead to season-ending surgery, but we are not lat doctors.

We are as happy to see the re-emergence of Minter, and while we are as dubious as experience might suggest with regards to how much he has left, we have to look at his rehab assignment as starting the DFA clock on Richard Lovelady, who knows a thing or two about DFAs.

 

Transactions, 4/11/2026

 

GOING	COMING
Designated for Assignment	Added to 40-Player Roster and Promoted from St. Lucie
Relief Pitchers	Relief Pitchers
Richard Lovelady	Craig Kimbrel
L/L DoB: 1995-07-07 High Level: MLB (2026)	R/R DoB: 32291 High Level: MLB (2025)

Well, that DFA clock sure wound down quickly.  And the Mets squeezed as much juice as the could out of Dickie by using him in mopup duty last night.  The bell was tolling for poor Lovelady the whole time.

It is hard to argue that Craig Kimbrel is distinctly ready to launch himself on the 2026 season, with only a single inning of A-Level competition since he came up short of the roster in Spring Training, but they don't call him "Dirty Craig" for nothing, and he hasn't made nine All-Star Teams for nothing.  He's a weirdo at the end of his career, but he finds a way to get it done.

Dirty Craig will be rocking his standard 46, which has been on his back for most of his 440 career saves.  It isn't expected that he will take a lot of ninth-inning leads to protect away from Devin Williams, but he is currently fifth on the all-time save list, 38 behind Lee Smith and an active Kenley Jansen.  Who knows if he will get a chance to make a further run piling up saves, but if doesn't come to blows with his father-in-law under the stands at Citi, a Hall-of-Fame future is all but guaranteed.

 

[Edgy MD]

As surely as Spring follows Winter, when a team is having trouble winning, they will begin juggling relievers on and of the roster, whether or not it is their bullpen costing them wins. 

So it goes with the current iteration of the Mets, making their second reliever DFA in as many days, while they utterly struggle in the scoring department — as if their relievers even own bats. 

Transactions, 4/12/2026

GOING	COMING
Designated for Assignment	Promoted from Syracuse
Relief Pitchers	Relief Pitchers
Luis Garcia	Joey Gerber
R/R DoB: 1987-01-30 High Level: MLB (2026)	R/R DoB: 1997-05-03 High Level: MLB (2025)

Say what you want about Luis Garcia, that thick, bushy bird's nest on his chin made him the most readily identifiable of the denizens of the new-look Mets bullpen.  A shutout ninth yesterday, however, proved to be less his salvation and more of an attempt by the Mets to soak up as much slop with him in a mop-up situation as they could before banishing the 14(!!)-year-vet to DFA-land.

The beneficiary of Garcia's bad news — Joey Gerber — previously appeared in the majors in 2020 with the Mariners (and does 2020 even count?!), before returning for a cameo last year with the Rays.  A 5.40 ERA at Syracuse for The Big Baby (and please let that be his actual nickname) is hardly making a strong case for being first guy up, but he's on the 40-Playe Roster, and that tends to get a guy to the head of the line.

An important Joey Gerber note: The Mets reserve relief corps (RRC) also features minor-league veteran Jordan Geber, currently unscored up on in 3 2/3 innings between Binghamton and Syracuse.  Barring an injury, he is almost certain to see some time with the big club this year, and just as likely to be conflated with Gerber.

Joey Gerber.  Jordan Geber.  Reserve separate and distinct room for the two of them in your head while you still can.

 

 

[whippoorwill]

Won’t miss that ugly beard

[Edgy MD]

And at Mets Roster Central, we will miss that beard exceedingly.

Baseball being baseball, if the schedule says that you have to get on the plane and fly out to play the Dodgers, that's what you have to do. The fact that you are searching for answers on offense that you just don't have does not matter.  You are an MLB team and somewhere between takeoff and landing, an answer is what you're going to have to come up with.  And then you have to run out there for a few games and put that answer to the test.

It's a bad time for such a test, but maybe things will sort themselves out.

Maybe?

Transactions, 4/13/2026

GOING	NEUTRAL	COMING
Demoted to Syracuse	Transferred from Outfield	Added to Roster and Promoted from St. Lucie
Infielders	Infielders	Outfielders
Ronny Mauricio	Brett Baty	Tommy Pham
S/R DoB: 2001-04-04 High Level: MLB (2026)	L/R DoB: 1999-11-13 High Level: MLB (2026)	R/R DoB: 32210 High Level: MLB (2025)

As hinted at in the abstract for this article it would take an impressive stretch to argue that reserve outfielder and 2023 Met Tommy Pham is the answer the Mets need in this hour, but he's the button they have pushed.  It could be that, like in the case of Craig Kimbrel, the Mets had a major-league vet riding minor-league busses with a contract that guaranteed him a callup or a release by a certain date.  As in the case of Kimbrel, Pham had only had a tiny amount of work way down in A-ball, so it's hard to argue that he made a case for his spot based on current performance.

But Gary Cohen argued on the air the other day that Pham could fall out of bed on January 1 and hit.  I guess that is to suggest that his hitting style relies more on instincts and athleticism than studied technique (which can be seen as sort of a backhanded compliment).   But what Gary didn't say is that Pham could hit well after the proverbial plunge from slumber, and with the reserve outfielder now 38, being a mostly league-average producer since 32, that is very much an open question. 

His fandango with the Mets, however, remains a shiny exception to his averageness, and his presence gives Brett Baty a chance to return to his native infield.

Early discussion upon receiving the news of Pham's imminent callup was less about Tommy than who he would be displacing.  Ronny Mauricio, while surprising few people (including him, most likely) in receiving the bad news, put the Mets in the odd position of enduring a five-game losing streak and trying to better their situation by getting rid of the last guy who won a game for them.  The other candidate — Carson Benge — may or may not have saved his roster spot by making a diving catch to keep the Mets in the game yesterday.  This would suggest a further oddity of keeping a team in a game they would ultimately lose doing more for the Mets than Mauricio giving them the only win they would compile all week.

We get it, here at Mets Roster Central.  There are worse things than being yesterday's top prospect, but all other things being equal, it is far better to be today's.

(As we go to press, there is no definitive news of the post-DFA stati of Richard Lovelady and Luis Garcia, but you would be utter fools not to stay tuned for the thrilling conclusion of those subplots.)

 

[Edgy MD]

If a guy makes his only appearance after midnight in a West Coast game, pitching a pair of mop-up innings as the team sleepwalked to their sixth straight loss ... was he actually a Met?

These is the question the legion of Joey Gerber fans are confronting as the Dodger series continues to unfold.

Transactions, 4/14/2026

GOING		COMING
Cleared Waivers and Released	Placed on 15-Day Injured List with Right Finger Blister	Promoted from Syracuse
Relief Pitchers
Luis Garcia	Joey Gerber	Austin Warren
R/R DoB: 1987-01-30 High Level: MLB (2026)	R/R DoB: 1997-05-03 High Level: MLB (2026)	R/R DoB: 1996-02-05 High Level: MLB (2025)

Info has been sketchy about the Luis Garcia release, but it is terribly likely that there are two bits of information missing in between Cleared Waivers and Released — namely, Assigned to Syracuse and Refused Assignment.  Luis and his shrubby, shrubby beard have 14 years of big league time, and likely has no desire to go down to Syracuse at 39, and so would rather go home and wait for a call from a big-league team that hasn't lost six in a row.

If you missed Joey Gerber's high-leg-kicking Juan Marichal imitation of a Mets debut last night, you missed a minor treat (at the tale end of a really flat-tasting/low-cal meal of a game).  Early speculation about his unexpected Injured List assignment recalled Billy Eppler's embarrassing disciplining for abuse of the Injured List. 

In favor of that notion is the head-scratching notion anybody would need 15 days to recover from blisters.

Going up against that notion is that the Mets, despite their losing streak, don't exactly have a burned-out pen right now.

Stepping in for Blister Boy is Austin Warren, who looked very impressive in pulling in 9 1/3 innings on the 2025 reliever carousel.  Hopefully, he finds more opportunities than that in 2026.

[Frayed Knot]

4 minutes ago, Edward O’N. Hoyt said:

If a guy makes his only appearance after midnight in a West Coast game, pitching a pair of mop-up innings as the team sleepwalked to their sixth straight loss ... was he actually a Met?

Are you kidding? That kind of outing makes him THE epitome of a Met. And as you know:

When you're a Met you're a Met all the way / from your first bullpen gaffe to your last pinch-hit K 

[whippoorwill]

We should mail Gerber some bandaids

[Benjamin Grimm]

Or some baby food.

[MFS62]

17 hours ago, Frayed Knot said:

Are you kidding? That kind of outing makes him THE epitome of a Met. And as you know:

When you're a Met you're a Met all the way / from your first bullpen gaffe to your last pinch-hit K 

I did a parody of several songs from West Side Story in my early CPF days. That was one of them. And I stored them on diskette which I can't use any more.

Sigh

Later

[Edgy MD]

The Mets are paying premium on last-minute flights to The West Coast, having arrived for a three-game stint, only to be forced to make a roster change before each game.

Transactions, 4/15/2026

GOING	COMING
Placed on 10-Day IL with Torn Meniscus in Left Knee	Promoted from Syracuse
Outfielders
Jared Young	MJ Melendez
L/R DoB: 1995-07-09 High Level: MLB (2026)	L/R DoB: 1993-11-29 High Level: MLB (2026)

The Mets went through Spring Training with a three-way battle for lefty reserve outfielder, and while competition was heated, and Jared Young and MJ Melendez enjoyed the advantage of already being on the 40-Player Roster, Mike Tauchman was said to be the favorite ... until he had to remove himself from the game near the end of camp.

A torn meniscus was his diagnosis, and a prognosis of surgery and the likelihood of missing the season was the sad result.  This opened the door for Jared Young, who did everything the team could have asked of him, exhibiting life for a batting corps that has had little to show.

But strangely, Young has now fallen to the same injury.  Hopefully the prognosis is less grave, but here we are on Jackie Robinson Day — so designated because back in 1947, the season didn't begin until this day.  So it's still an opening day of sorts, and the Mets are pulling their third lefty-hitting reserve outfielder from the deck.

MJ has versatility, playing all the corner spots, infield and outfield, and catching too.  But you'll be unsurprised to learn he's off to a slow start as well, punching in with a .216 / .286 / .431 // .717 line in 56 plate appearances thus far for Syracuse. But hey! — six of his 11 hits have gone for extra bases, so maybe he runs into one tonight against Shohei Ohtani.

[Edgy MD]

Way back when before the earth cooled and the Mets were managed by Yogi Berra, The Carol Burnett Show ran a sketch loaded with gay subtext (in which the sub- barely qualified), in which Harvey Korman and Steve Lawrence, as rival businessmen, fight over a client (Tim Conway) with the passion of spurned lovers — each desiring the client less for himself but for the pain it causes them to see him with another.

Such is the case with young Richard Lovelady.

Transactions, 4/16/2026

GOING

Traded to WAS for Cash

Relief Pitchers

Richard Lovelady

L/L DoB: 1995-07-07 High Level: MLB (2026)

Here is some of the recent transaction history for Richard (nee Dicky) Lovelady:

• June 23, 2025: New York Mets signed free agent LHP Richard Lovelady.
• June 25- September 27, 2025: Up, down, up, down, yadda-yadda-yadda, including three DFAs.
• September 29, 2025: LHP Richard Lovelady elected free agency.
• October 23, 2025: New York Mets signed free agent LHP Richard Lovelady.
• January 22, 2026: New York Mets designated LHP Richard Lovelady for assignment.
• January 29, 2026: Washington Nationals claimed LHP Richard Lovelady off waivers from New York Mets.
• March 10, 2026: Washington Nationals designated LHP Richard Lovelady for assignment.
• March 14, 2026: New York Mets claimed LHP Richard Lovelady off waivers from Washington Nationals.
• March 14, 2026: New York Mets activated LHP Richard Lovelady.
• April 11, 2026: New York Mets designated LHP Richard Lovelady for assignment.
• April 16, 2026: New York Mets traded LHP Richard Lovelady to Washington Nationals for cash.
• April 17, 2026: Washington Nationals activated LHP Richard Lovelady.

Now, Mets Roster Central doesn't know about you, but that looks like two teams that only kind of want a guy, but suddenly develop more respect for him when they see the other team has interest.  Or, going back to the sketch, two would-be lovers whose ardor for their mutual target becomes more inflamed as they see him in the arms of another.

Human psychology — and biology — can be weird like that, and seeing it seemingly play out the multi-billion-dollar world of Major League Baseball is illuminating.

Anyhow, nobody dislikes the stupid game of Reliever Roulette more than Mets Roster Central, churning through human lives even when your pen is far from sapped, as a way to feel like you are doing something about your dreadfully performing squad while covering your eyes to the grossly obvious fact that the problem is on the offensive side of the ball.

[Edgy MD]

As the Mets' losing streak approached (and has now reached) 10 games, displaying an offensive downturn with no answers, Mets Roster Central regrets to report that the transactions the Mets are making do not even suggest management is pretending to offer a way forward.

 

Transactions, 4/18/2026

GOING	COMING
Placed on 10-Day Injured List with Right Wrist Contusion	Promoted from Syracuse
Infielders	Catchers
Jorge Polanco	Hayden Senger
S/R DoB: 1999-11-13 High Level: MLB (2026)	R/R DoB: 1997-04-03 High Level: MLB (2025)

While Jorge Polanco has surprised few by being a suboptimal solution at first (and, more frequently, DH), his right wrist contusion (hadn't we been made to understand he had a calf strain or the like?) leading to an IL assignment can hardly be framed as good news.  But hey, finding opportunity in crisis is what GMs and PoBOs are supposed to do.  Maybe they press the right button, and maybe they call up the right replacement from the hundreds of aspiring ballplayers in the Mets system, and maybe they take a small step in the right direction.

It's been known to happen.  Hey, look at MJ Melendez.

But in a great surprise to Mets Roster Central, the Mets decided to call up third-string catcher Hayden Senger.  Hayden has of course shown himself to be a capable receiver, but one who hits like ... well, like a third-string catcher (.415 career OPS).

And when a team scraping the bottom of the league-wide barrel in most every offensive category needs to replace a starting firstbaseman/DH type, chooses such a character, you can't be blamed if you ask, "Are we actually trying to win?"

There is a logic to the move.  At least, Gary Cohen bent over backwards trying to lay out some logic to it in the booth today, noting that the Cubs have a bullpen loaded the eyeballs with lefties, and so the presence of Senger would allow the team to more safely deploy Luis Torrens as a righthanded pinch-hitter, and more safely deploy Francisco Alvarez (who Gary described as "red hot," but can more accurately be observed as not as Arctic-ly cold as some others in the Mets lineup.

The obvious retort to this is, if you want better options for a righthanded pinch-hitter, and righthanded DH, add a righthanded pinch-hitter/DH to roster and let the catchers do what they do from where they do it.

Gary might well have said, "Calling up Hayden Senger gives the Mets a great chance to rob Peter in order to pay off that nasty debt to Paul."

I mean, who are we kidding here, right?

What Gary didn't mention — at least, not while Mets Roster Central was listening — is that Senger, despite his unseemly track record as an MLB batter, is leading 11-9 Syracuse in almost every offensive category, sporting a .257 / .316 / .714 // 1.030 slash line boosted up by five homeruns, more than anybody with the big club.

You cannot be blamed for being dubious that he is the answer, but if you insist that the Mets shouldn't be messing with the catchers and instead call up the best offensive option ... the answer is still Senger.

So maybe they keep him around for one more day as this lefty-heavy bullpen looms, and then call Ronny Mauricio back, but the message is the same — the Mets are going to have to find a way to bop, as the answer isn't coming in the form of a callup any time soon.

[whippoorwill]

On 4/17/2026 at 11:56 PM, Edgy MD said:

Way back when before the earth cooled and the Mets were managed by Yogi Berra, The Carol Burnett Show ran a sketch loaded with gay subtext (in which the sub- barely qualified), in which Harvey Korman and Steve Lawrence, as rival businessmen, fight over a client (Tim Conway) with the passion of spurned lovers — each desiring the client less for himself but for the pain it causes them to see him with another.

Such is the case with young Richard Lovelady.

Transactions, 4/16/2026

GOING

Traded to WAS for Cash

Relief Pitchers

Richard Lovelady

L/L DoB: 1995-07-07 High Level: MLB (2026)

Here are some of the recent transaction history for Richard (nee Dicky) Lovelady:

• June 23, 2025: New York Mets signed free agent LHP Richard Lovelady.
• June 25- September 27, 2025: Up, down, up, down, yadda-yadda-yadda, including three DFAs.
• September 29, 2025: LHP Richard Lovelady elected free agency.
• October 23, 2025: New York Mets signed free agent LHP Richard Lovelady.
• January 22, 2026: New York Mets designated LHP Richard Lovelady for assignment.
• January 29, 2026: Washington Nationals claimed LHP Richard Lovelady off waivers from New York Mets.
• March 10, 2026: Washington Nationals designated LHP Richard Lovelady for assignment.
• March 14, 2026: New York Mets claimed LHP Richard Lovelady off waivers from Washington Nationals.
• March 14, 2026: New York Mets activated LHP Richard Lovelady.
• April 11, 2026: New York Mets designated LHP Richard Lovelady for assignment.
• April 16, 2026: New York Mets traded LHP Richard Lovelady to Washington Nationals for cash.
• April 17, 2026: Washington Nationals activated LHP Richard Lovelady.

Now, Mets Roster Central doesn't know about you, but that looks like two teams that only kind of want a guy, but suddenly develop more respect for him when they see the other team has interest.  Or, going back to the sketch, two would-be lovers whose ardor for their mutual target becomes more inflamed as they see him in the arms of another.

Human psychology — and biology — can be weird like that, and seeing it seemingly play out the multi-billion-dollar world of Major League Baseball is illuminating.

Anyhow, nobody dislikes the stupid game of Reliever Roulette more than Mets Roster Central, churning through human lives even when your pen is far from sapped, as a way to feel like you are doing something about your dreadfully performing squad while covering your eyes to the grossly obvious fact that the problem is on the offensive side of the ball.

Hilarious 😂 

[Edgy MD]

25 minutes ago, whippoorwill said:

Hilarious 😂 

Yeah, it's weird the things one remembers.

[MFS62]

1 hour ago, Edgy MD said:

Yeah, it's weird the things one remembers.

The analogy to the show was priceless.

Later

[Edgy MD]

As the best hopes for the Mets' 2026 season are currently on fire, only a fool would dismiss the importance of the return of Juan Soto.  But his coming as a DH, and without an inning of rehab games, really ties the Mets hands, and suggests there are several more steps that will be needed to patch their assemblage into a consistently competitive lineup

Transactions, 4/22/2026

GOING	NEUTRAL	COMING
Demoted to Syracuse	Transferred from Outfield	Activated from Injured List
Catchers	Infielders	Outfielders
Hayden Senger	MJ Melendez	Juan Soto
R/R DoB: 1997-04-03 High Level: MLB (2026)	L/R DoB: 1993-11-29 High Level: MLB (2026)	L/L DoB: 1998-10-25 High Level: MLB (2026)

Hayden Senger exits the scene as but a phantom on the 2026 Mets — having not appeared in any of the four games since his callup.  His presence was very slightly felt last night — to anyone who could feel anything besides cold, despair, and semi-ironic delight in the after-the-horses-left-the-barn performance of Austin Warren — as the Mets sent Luis Torrens up to pinch hit with confidence that they still had a backup catcher.  But like much of the last dozen games, that appearance.

Senger's unexpected callup does certainly speak to how much confidence the Mets have in MJ Melendez as a third-string catcher, which is apparently not much.  But Soto taken over the DH slot for the time being displaces MJ (the Mets most consistent bat during this dark period), and suggests that any future work he gets will be competing with Brett Baty for time as righthanded firstbaseman — a position at which he has netted all of two innings in the majors and five more in the minors.

What happens upon the return Jorge Polanco — another everyday player with a damaged lower body and positional unfamiliarity relegated to DH-ing — is a further mystery.

The Mets are fighting just to survive the day. And that has been a consistenly losing fight for the last two weeks.

But hey!  Juan Soto, right?!!

[Edgy MD]

When Jorge Polanco hit the Injured list, it was with a right wrist contusion, but he had already been relegated to DH duty exclusively (along with forcing the Mets to deploy pinch runners on the occasions when he'd reach late in a game) by an injured calf.  Now, the Mets' poor fortunes have forced them to bring back Juan Soto from the IL before he is able to play the field. 

His injury, too, was too the calf.

So now, with Francisco Lindor joining a club no one wants to join has brought scrutiny on Mets calf care.  A pattern doesn't mean a common cause, but it sure leads to a common question.

Transactions, 4/16/2026

COMING

Transferred from St. Lucie to Brooklyn on Rehab Assignment

Relief Pitchers

A.J. Minter

L/L DoB: 1993-09-02 High Level: MLB (2025)

Mets Roster Central failed to announce this transaction in a timely matter, which is a shame because we love transactions.

A.J. Minter, absent for the last year following season-ending lat surgery (the lat is the calf of the back, we suspect) is working his way, we are excited to say, back.  His return to the big-league roster would give Carlos Mendoza a second lefthanded late-inning option.  (For the time being, Medoza has been deploying erstwhile starters Sean Manaea and David Peterson out of the bullpen, but that appears to be neither weaponizable nor sustainable.  It is, insummary, sub-potimal.)

In his initial rehab assignment with St. Lucie, Minter threw two shutout innings in two appearances, striking out two and allowing no baserunners WHICH IS THE WAY IT SHOULD BE.

Transactions, 4/21/2026

GOING	COMING
Retired	Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic, Projected for DSL Orange
Relief Pitchers	Relief Pitchers
Brett Banks	Derlin Rojas
L/R DoB: 37167 High Level: A+(2026)	R/R DoB: 2007-07-21 High Level: Academy (2026)

On April 21st (the real Earth Day) one career ended and another began.

There's a story behind Brett Banks, but one we don't yet have.  Brett, who went through back surgery way back in high school, Brett was in the midst of an encouraging minor league career (2.47 ERA over 53 games since the Mets grabbed him in the 11th round out of UNC-Wilmington in 2023), and after a typically impressive 2025 campaign, the Mets thought enough of him to send him to The Arizona Fall League.

But now, only three games (unscored upon in 4 1/3 innings) into the 2026 season, Brett has pulled the plug, and we can only guess he either sadly got bad news, or perhaps more happily found himself called to a new vocation.  We will keep searching for updates.

With Brett bowing out, 18-year-old Darlin Rojas arrives to backfill in his place in the system.  It's not exactly high season for signing Dominican teenagers, but Mets scouts are always keeping their ear to the ground, and Derlin's relatively advanced age means there is no window during which he can be signed.

Transactions, 4/22/2026

COMING

Transferred from Brooklyn to Syracuse on Rehab Assignment

Relief Pitchers

A.J. Minter

L/L DoB: 1993-09-02 High Level: MLB (2025)

Three things are inevitable — death, taxes, and A.J. Minter's relentless ascent up the rehabilitation ladder toward his return to MLB glory.

Among Mets veterans, A.J. is part of the exclusive Club J — joined by such illustrious fellow members as A.J. Ramos, C.J. Nitkowski, D.J. Carrasco, D.J. Dozier, DJ Stewart, J.J. Putz, current Met MJ Melendez, P.J. Conlon, R.J. Alvarez, T.J. McFarland, and T.J. Rivera.  You'd think that, for the purposes of building such a club, locating a B.J. would be relatively low-hanging fruit, but alas.

A.J.'s victory, nonetheless continues, as he plowed through Brooklyn giving up no runs in 1 2/3 innings, and possibly encountered fellow lefty Brett Banks as he pondered his retirement.

Transactions, 4/23/2026

GOING	GOING	NEUTRAL	COMING	COMING
Demoted to Syracuse	Placed on 10-Day Injured List with Strained Left Calf	Transferred from Rotation	Promoted from Syracuse	Promoted from Syracuse
Relief Pitchers	Infielders	Relief Pitchers	Starting Pitchers	Infielders
Austin Warren	Francisco Lindor	David Peterson	Christian Scott	Ronny Mauricio
R/R DoB: 1996-02-05 High Level: MLB (2026)	S/R DoB: 1993-11-14 High Level: MLB (2026)	L/L DoB: 1995-09-03 High Level: MLB (2024)	R/R DoB: 1999-06-15 High Level: MLB (2024)	S/R DoB: 2001-04-04 High Level: MLB (2026)

Here we have the transaction day that gives this post its theme. Just as Juan Soto returns to the Mets they lose their other top everyday player to another calf injury.  While the team is keeping details about the injury close to the vest, two things are clear: (1) the injury is more severe than Soto's, and (2) Francisco Lindor has a history (including already this season) of returning to the field in surprisingly short order despite serious injuries.   

Francisco has been outfitted in a boot for the time being, so even the most optimistic Lindor fanbois and fangirz have to expect an absence of at least two weeks.  In the meantime, we have a chance for Ronny Mauricio, captain of Gondor, to show his quality.

Ronny returns to the Mets following a three-homer, five RBI game against Worcester on Tuesday, and before the Mets 12-game losing streak, it was a deep walkoff drive by Ronny that had given them their last win.

Ronny is listed at only 6'3", but up at the plate, it looks like 5'3" of that is legs, and Mets Roster Central has noted a Darryl Strawberry-ish loop to his swing, along with the bat speed to take the high fastball the other way, but we're concerned those long limbs will make it hard for him to stick at shortstop.  We, nonethless, are rooting loudly for him to stick on the roster this time around.

Transactions, 4/24/2026

GOING	NEUTRAL	COMING
Demoted to Syracuse	Transferred from Bullpen	Added to 40-Player Roster and Promoted from Syracuse
Starting Pitchers	Starting Pitchers	Relief Pitchers
Christian Scott	David Peterson	Carl Edwards, Jr.
R/R DoB: 1999-06-15 High Level: MLB (2026)	L/L DoB: 1995-09-03 High Level: MLB (2024)	R/R DoB: 33484 High Level: MLB (2025)

Christian Scott, as noted in the transaction above, returned to the big leagues after and absence of a season-plus following a career-interrupting visit from The UCL Phantom.  Christian's start was ineffective, but it was good to see him back and healthy as the Mets got the win anyhow.

Christian's quick boomerang back to the minors seemingly returns David Peterson to the rotation after working out of the bullpen his last two appearances.  Carlos Mendoza, on the other hand, could possibly keep partnering him with an opener, but somebody needs to tell manager Carlos that the point of an opener is to push your "starter" deeper into games, so pulling Peterson after four innings isn't getting it done, strategically.

If Peterson is deployed as such, his opening partner may be Carl Edwards, Jr.  Carl hadn't been killing it in AAA, and he wasn't on the roster, but as a veteran of over 10 years in the big leagues, he was the sort of guy to jump the line.  If he doesn't show much, well, maybe he buys a little bit more development time for Alex Carillo or somebody.

Because aren't we all — you, me, the trash collectors, the cops, the zookeepers, and the president himself — just trying to keep a lid on things until somebody else comes along?

[Cowtipper]

Joey Gerber has been sent to the minors for a rehab stint. 

[Edgy MD]

One reliever signed away. Another one sent on a rehab assignment. A third one returns to the MLB roster that he never should have banished from.

One thing they have in common — apart from being three more bullpenners that the Mets treat with depraved indifference — is that none is an offensive answer for the punchless 2026 Mets.

Transactions, 4/21/2026

GOING

Signed away by MIN to Minor-League Contract

Relief Pitchers

Luis Garcia

R/R DoB: 1987-01-30 High Level: MLB (2026)

The shrubby beard of Luis Garcia was DFA'd — and the rest of him along with it — when adding Joey Gerber.  There was no reason to think Garcia was washed up after 14 year of MLB relieving, but he hadn't been pitching that great, and having gone the day before and twice in three days, made him the guy to be thrown overboard.

It's a shitty policy — prioritizing fresh arms over good arms, and filling out rosters with day laborers instead of teammates — but it's the way baseball works these days.

Garcia wanted no part of Syracuse and rightfully asked for his release.  Now he gets to work his way back to MLB status with Minnesota as a St. Paul Saint.

Transactions, 4/25/2026

GOING

Signed away by MIN to Minor-League Contract

Relief Pitchers

Joey Gerber

R/R DoB: 1997-05-03 High Level: MLB (2026)

As noted above, the fresh arm the Mets brought up at the cost of Luis Garcia was fellow MLB vet Joey Gerber.  The Mets promptly deployed Gerber with mopup duty at the tail-end of a 4-0 loss to the Dodgers.  He did everything you wanted him to do — throwing two scoreless innings, striking out five, and flashing dimples that went on for days.

One had every reason to assume the shadow of the DFA dragon would fall on Gerberbaby's locker as soon as the game ended, but either injury or bullshit roster manipulation intervened, and he was instead place on the IL with a finger blister. 

It probably isn't the first time a guy got a 10-day IL assignment followed by a rehab assignment (blister rehab?) over such an injury, but it sure feels like it.  You hate to call out your GM for playing games with the Injured List, but there really isn't enough sand for Mets Roster Central to bury their heads in.

Any how, we look forward to Gerber's return with the most pristine of finger tips.

Transactions, 4/26/2026

COMING

Promoted from Syracuse

Relief Pitchers

Austin Warren

R/R DoB: 1996-02-05 High Level: MLB (2026)

Today's double-header invited the Mets to add a 27th player to their roster.  Teams invariably add extra pitching in such cases and the Mets brought up Austin (don't call him Adam) Warren.

Aussie became a minor sensation earlier in the week when a Devin Williams ninth-inning collapse brought him in to clean up a messy situation with the bases loaded, no outs, and the fans hungry for blood.

Of course he struck out the side, turning an angry crowd into chanters of his name.

Of course he got a one-way ticket back to Syracuse.

Of course he's likely to get into both games of today's double header, taking a hit for pitchers the Mets value more highly.

Of course he's likely to be shipped out in short order again.

Austin, as Ron Darling put it in the booth today, just gets outs.  But because he lacks elite velocity, the Mets don't envision him as a pitcher they can develop into a more weaponizable part of their bullpen for high-leverage situations, so he and his kind get scrap-heaped, whether they are effective or not.

Baseball, you make it so hard to love you sometimes.

[Cowtipper]

Jonah Conradt, released in November, was signed by the Nationals in March.

Luis De Los Santos, granted free agency in November, signed with the Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos in Mexico about a week ago. 

Sam Biller, released in February, was re-signed in March. 

Aaron Rozek, released in March, was signed by the Twins in April. 

[seawolf17]

Pham being DFAed, sez the internet.

[Edgy MD]

And Austin Slater to join.

[Cowtipper]

I'm still very surprised no one has taken a flyer on Matt Allan yet. 

[seawolf17]

Probably because he's only thrown 30 innings in the past seven years.