The Mets announced that they have selected the contract of left-hander Anderson Severino. He has been optioned to Triple-A Syracuse, so he will stick with that club, but he is now on the 40-man and will be a candidate to be recalled to the active roster going forward. Pitchers have to wait 15 days after being optioned before they can be recalled, though exceptions are made when someone else hits the injured list or a club needs a 27th man for a doubleheader. Right-hander Clay Holmes was transferred to the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move 40-man move. Holmes recently suffered a fibula fracture and is expected to be out of action until August.
The announcement from the Mets said that Severino was optioned after last night’s game, so the Severino/Holmes moves seemingly happened yesterday. The Mets also officially announced today’s earlier-reported outfield moves, with Austin Slater designated for assignment and Nick Morabito recalled. Those moves drop the 40-man count to 39, so the club has an opening for Zach Thornton, who is going to be selected on Wednesday. Thornton will fill the 40-man tomorrow but the Mets will need to make a corresponding active roster move for him.
Severino, 31, signed a minor league deal with the Mets in the offseason. It’s possible that the pact contained some kind of opt-out or assignment clause. That usually explains why a club would add a player to its 40-man roster and then immediately option him. Giving him a spot prevents him from opting out or getting sent elsewhere, but also doesn’t require the club to immediately call the player up, which would then require a corresponding move. There have also been a few cases where a player has been given a roster spot to prevent him from pursuing an opportunity overseas.
Whatever the reasoning, it’s understandable that the Mets don’t want Severino to get away, as he is out to a hot start. He has thrown 17 1/3 Triple-A innings so far this year, allowing just 1.04 earned runs per nine. His 12.1% walk rate is quite high but he has punched out 27.3% of batters faced and induced grounders on 52.6% of balls in play. His ERA has gotten some help from a .231 batting average on balls in play and 83.3% strand rate but Severino’s 3.00 FIP suggests he would be getting good results even with more neutral luck. His fastball is averaging just over 96 miles per hour and he’s throwing a mid-80s slider almost a third of the time, along with a rarely-used curve.
It’s not the first time Severino has posted good numbers in the minors but he has only received a brief look the majors. His big league track record currently consists of just 7 1/3 innings tossed for the White Sox in 2022.
He is not quite back to the majors just yet but he is now in a good position to return to the show for the first time in four years. The Mets have two lefties in their bullpen at the moment but one of them is long man Sean Manaea, meaning that Brooks Raley is effectively the only proper southpaw reliever. If they want to add another lefty or just need a fresh arm at some point in the future, Severino is now on the 40-man and could get the call.
Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Imagn Images
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