The Mets announced Thursday that they’ve signed left-handed reliever Luis Avilan to a minor league contract and invited him to Major League Spring Training, where he’ll compete for a bullpen job. Avilan is repped by SPS Sports Group.
Non-tendered by the Phillies earlier this winter, Avilan will land with their division rivals in hopes of cracking a Mets bullpen that is light on left-handed options at present. Daniel Zamora represents the team’s primary 40-man option, while fellow veteran Hector Santiago was also recently inked to a minors pact with an invite to big league camp.
Avilan, 29, has turned in consistently solid numbers at the MLB level over the past three seasons but struggled to stick on various 40-man rosters. Dating back to 2016, he’s pitched to a sharp 3.32 ERA with averages of 10.6 K/9, 4.1 BB/9 and a pristine 0.4 HR/9. He posted a grounder rate well north of 50 percent from 2016-17, though that plummeted to 36 percent this past season. Regardless, Avilan has been a useful big league reliever and generally been a nightmare for opposing lefties, who have managed just a .205/.302/.289 slash against him across the past three seasons. Right-handers have fared better but haven’t exactly thrived against him, hitting .263/.349/.386.
That’s Luis Garcia
Yeah, apologies on that. It was mislabeled in our photo provider and I didn’t look closely enough at the thumbnail, clearly. I’ve updated to actually include a pic of Avilan — should render within the app shortly if it hasn’t already.
So funny
Admire the efforts BVW has taken. Made all the safe minor league contract signees. Low risk moves.
As a Mets fan I can only say he has made this off season fun and interesting for us.
Can’t judge him on a GM until we get a showing from what Cano can do. Only time will tell who won that deal, would love for it to be the Mets, but time will tell.
Who?!
The Wilpons have been listening to Macklemore’s hit song “Thrift Shop” on repeat since the Cano trade.
Yawn
Mets May have hit the brakes on spending till DeGrom issue gets resolved. They offered 14 for one yr to avoid arbitration. The counter offer was 150 for 5. (These numbers may be slightly off as I was busy when they were given over the radio. ) Once all the arbitration cases are settled they will then know what they can spend. Meanwhile there is nothing wrong with filling the minors with guys like this. Better than a bunch of 90 plus arms that can’t throw a strike or get the pitch to move.
Oh I forgot that not all the arbitration cases have been settled, good point.
5/150 isn’t realistic for Jake, given his age and that he will only get $15-18 this year (so that’s really 4/132-135).
The Mets will probably start at 4/100 (13/29/29/29), and the deal will end up at 5/135 (15 and then 4×30)
“Only got $20 in my pocket”
Another “solid depth move”
Lol at the Mutts
All you do is comment on every Mets move. Please tell me what moves in the MLB are good moves? You know a good amount about baseball so you can’t be a troll. You’re clearly just a Mets hater, which is pathetic since the Mets are relevant once every 15 years…
Hey, boogaloo doesnt just troll the Mets. They also bring politics into these boards when nobody asks for it!
Who just brought up politics when no one asked for it?
Lol
The dude’s got a point ^^^
True. True. I’m sorry for the dividing political statement I made. Ignore that.
Once a Mets fan always a Mets fan…get carried away and think that you are the expert and can deflect all criticism toward your helpless team. It’s an almost 40 year run for the Wilpon family…they lead the MLB in drama.
If only BVW, can hypnotize Fred / Jeff and make them show Harper or Machado the $$$, then it would be a successful winter…Lol
Wow, He had to settle for a minor league deal? Pretty ridiculous.
Exactly what I was thinking.
I see his numbers listed, I watched him while with my Braves…how does a situational lefty as good as this have to settle for a minors contract?
If that’s the case, all 30 teams should have lined up to sign him, whether they needed him or not.
The Braves already control three lefties in the ‘pen, but i’d have willingly taken Avilan back on for nothing more than a minors commitment. Especially seeing as how Venters is one of our lefties, and his arm is liable to fall off.
He could only get a minor league contract? Why?
Everything about him looks good, including his age. The only knock against him is that it appears he walked too many.
All right Mets
29 years old, strikes out over 10 per 9 innings, he has a career ERA south of 3.50 and never allows homers, not to mention he shuts down LH hitters.
Seriously, his only negative is that it appears he issues too many free passes.
What about the diminishing ground ball rate. Here’s to the long ball. Another petty cash move.
Not bad can the Mets trade cano with $20 mill and Lagares to the yanks for andujar,Bird and Loiasiga the yanks can use. Cano at 2b or 1b and the Mets can put Mcneil back at 2b with Andujar at 3b and Bird can backup Alonso if he can’t handle 1b and with the $$ the Mets save use it for Pollack.
No sorry jvent. Cash isn’t bailing out wagon wheel. This trade is so upside down that his job is already in jeopardy. Can’t wait til late May when it is obvious to all that Cabo’s slide is gaining traction.
You must be a Mets fan.This breaks down as Mets salary dump for Andujar Bird and Losaiga. Lagares couldn’t make the Yanks as a backup and Cano was already traded once this preseason as a salary dumpThrow in Thor and we’ll talk
All he could get was a minor league deal? Man.
What would be the advantage of signing deGrom to a long term deal two years before he can become a FA?
Keep going Wagon Train!
Keep going
I really like all the secondary/depth moves made by BVW. The Davis kid intrigues me the most. If he can perform and squeeze Frazier out of the lineup, that’s a plus in my opinion. Hopefully Alonso will be up by May and will perform to his capabilities. Santiago and Avilan can hopefully grab a lefty spot in the pen. Outside of a 5th starter upgrade,(Miley,Gonzalez Bucholtz) I think the Mets can head into the season and can always upgrade at the deadline if they are in contention. There is no denying that BVW has significantly improved this team.
Good moves thus far. Am hoping for another major signing but I don’t think it’ll happen. Could you imagine if they sign Harper for 3-4 yrs. NY would go bonkers.
Thats a nice no risk high reward move for a team that doesnt have a clear lefty option out of the bullpen. He really could be a diamond in the rough when it comes to this years minor league signings.
I’m pretty surprised he couldn’t get a major league deal. The Mets are all about buying low, but this time it could actually be decent.