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Mets Notes: Catcher, Harvey, Bruce

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The Mets have been without Travis d’Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki for a week and have received just two hits from their patchwork catching tandem of Jose Lobaton and Tomas Nido. However, Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News hears that in spite of that, the Mets don’t plan to trade for a catcher before Plawecki returns in another two to three weeks. Ackert checked in on three AL clubs with “obvious” matches — speculatively speaking, Blake Swihart and Wilson Ramos would be a pair of clear on-paper matches — and was told that the Mets have not reached out. Rather, they’ve told clubs who’ve reached out that they plan to stay internal for now. Mike Puma of the New York Post paints a slightly different picture, reporting that the Mets have begun to kick the tires on some options. He lists Swihart, Ramos and Houston’s Max Stassi as “potential pursuits,” though there’s no mention of direct contact with the Red Sox, Rays or Astros regarding that trio in his report.

More notes out of Queens…

  • With Jason Vargas nearing a return from the disabled list, the Mets will soon need to create a vacancy in their rotation, and based on performance, Matt Harvey would be the obvious starter to get bumped. However, the right-hander told the media following that he considers himself a starting pitcher and isn’t thinking about a move to the bullpen (links via Puma and MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo). Harvey cited his three scoreless innings to close out last night’s rough outing as evidence that he can “get people out still in the fifth and sixth inning when my pitch count gets up,” though the Braves had already pounced on him for six runs by that point. Harvey has more than five years of MLB service time, meaning he’d have to give his consent to be optioned to the minors. Asked about the possibility of being optioned, he told reporters: “I can’t answer that question right now.”
  • MLB.com’s Bill Ladson sat down with Jay Bruce for a Q&A and talked about his return to the Mets, the team’s expectations and the work he’s done with hitting coaches Kevin Long (now with the Nationals) and Pat Roessler over the course of his Mets tenure. As Bruce explains, his return to New York was helped out by the fact that he had a chance to get to new new skipper Mickey Callaway in his time with Cleveland following last year’s trade. The Texas native acknowledges that there was some interest from Houston this offseason and that playing in his home state “would have meant a lot,” but he makes clear that he’s thrilled to be back in New York on a team that believes it can make a run at the postseason in 2018 and beyond.

Mets Sign Vance Worley To Minor League Deal, Release A.J. Griffin

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The Mets have signed right-handers Vance Worley and Scott Copeland to minor league contracts, as first reported at MetsMinors.net. Anthony DiComo of MLB.com adds (via Twitter) that the Mets have released fellow righty A.J. Griffin, who’d been pitching for their Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas.

The 30-year-old Worley, a Wasserman client, turned in solid numbers from 2014-16 when he worked to a combined 3.38 ERA and 3.98 FIP with 6.2 K/9 against 2.6 BB/9 in 269 innings between the Pirates and the Orioles. However, a 2017 stint with the Marlins yielded catastrophic results, as Worley was hammered at a .339/.408/.534 clip en route to a 6.91 ERA and 4.90 FIP in 71 1/3 innings of work. Worley had his share of misfortune in 2017, as evidenced by a career-worst .378 average on balls in play, but he also surrendered a career-worst 36 percent hard-contact rate.

Copeland is also 30 and was also with the Marlins in 2017, though unlike Worley, he spent the entirety of last season pitching at the Triple-A level and didn’t reach the Majors. Last year in New Orleans, Copeland made 26 starts and totaled 137 1/3 frames of 4.97 ERA ball, averaging 7.7 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9 in that time. Copeland induced plenty of grounders (54.8 percent) but also watched 20 percent of the fly-balls he allowed clear the fence for home runs (1.31 HR/9). He does have 15 1/3 innings of work at the big league level under his belt — all coming with the Blue Jays back in 2015.

Adding Worley and Copeland to the minor league ranks will replace some of the depth the Mets lost by cutting ties with Griffin. The Mets added Griffin on a minor league pact back in February, but the 30-year-old veteran was clobbered for 16 runs on 13 hits (three homers) and six walks in just three innings of work in Las Vegas. Over the past two seasons, Griffin has made 38 starts and 41 total appearances for the Rangers but limped to a 5.41 ERA and an even more troublesome 5.95 FIP in 196 2/3 innings of work.

Anthony Swarzak's Rehab Shut Down Due To Lingering Discomfort

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  • Anthony Swarzak’s rehab with the Mets has been shut down for now due to lingering discomfort in his ailing oblique muscle, tweets MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo. He’d been throwing off of flat ground but now won’t be throwing at all and won’t travel with the club on its upcoming road trip, per DiComo. Swarzak inked a two-year, $14MM deal with the Mets this offseason but has pitched just 2 1/3 innings on the year due to a DL stint that now looks like it’ll be prolonged.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Realmuto, Moustakas, Machado, Donaldson

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The Mets made repeated inquiries on Marlins catcher J.T. Realmuto during the offseason, says Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic in a video tweet. They also asked the Marlins about Starlin Castro. However, at that point in the winter, the club had just traded Christian Yelich to the Brewers, and they had also unloaded the contracts of Dee Gordon, Giancarlo Stanton and Marcell Ozuna; they weren’t looking to cut any more salary at that moment in time. While the Mets are prepared to roll with Tomas Nido and Jose Lobaton for now, Rosenthal suggests that the club could attempt to revisit Realmuto discussions at some point.

More from Rosenthal…

  • Although it’s early, Rosenthal suggests that Mike Moustakas looks like a hot trade candidate, citing his physical condition and low salary as selling points for the Royals third baseman. According to GM Dayton Moore, Moustakas is “running as well as he ever has.” Rosenthal figures that Kansas city will be among the most active trade deadline sellers in July, and could also dangle southpaw Danny Duffy, second baseman Whit Merrifield and closer Kelvin Herrera.
  • The shifting power structure of Orioles ownership might affect the way the club approaches a potential Manny Machado trade, should they end up willing to deal him. Peter Angelos was always opposed to making trades with the division-rival Yankees, but the younger Angelos’ might not place such a restriction on the concept. There are a number of other reasons to throw cold water on the idea of a Machado-to-Yankees swap, as Rosenthal notes, such as the presence of Brandon Drury and the Yankees’ possible focus on pitching. Still, the idea seems more plausible now that Peter Angelos’ sons are more active in the running of the club.
  • One rival executive estimates that there are “tens of millions” of dollars riding on the health of Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson’s shoulder. Rosenthal posits that the former AL MVP will be much less valuable as a free agent if there are questions surrounding his ability to play third base; much of his value lies in his defensive prowess. Being viewed as a first base/DH type for the bulk of his remaining career could eliminate some NL teams as suitors, and it doesn’t help that Donaldson is about to turn 33.

Dominic Smith Off DL, Back To Triple-A

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  • Right-hander Jeremy Hellickson could take the ball for the Nationals on Monday when they open a series against the division-rival Mets, Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com suggests. Righty A.J. Cole is penciled in at the moment, though signs are pointing to Hellickson making his Nats debut, Zuckerman explains. Promoting Hellickson, whom Washington signed to a minors deal before the season, would require the team to add him to its 40-man roster and jettison someone else. That wouldn’t be the out-of-options Cole, per Zuckerman, who expects him to move to the bullpen in the event of a Hellickson call-up. The 31-year-old Hellickson, a veteran of 197 starts, will earn a $2MM salary if he lands a spot with the Nats.
  • The Mets activated first baseman Dominic Smith from the DL on Sunday and optioned him to Triple-A Las Vegas, Tim Healey of Newsday tweets. The former top 100 prospect had been dealing with a strained quad since the outset of spring training, thus putting the kibosh on his chances of winning a job in camp. Smith, 22, is now behind Adrian Gonzalez, Wilmer Flores (and maybe others) in the Mets’ first base pecking order.

Matt Harvey Not A Lock To Stay In Rotation

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Mets right-hander Matt Harvey opened the season with five scoreless innings of one-hit ball back on April 3, but the former ace hasn’t fared nearly as well in two starts since then. Harvey yielded four earned runs in five frames in each of those outings – including in a loss to the Brewers on Saturday – and now there’s some question as to whether he’s a lock to remain in the team’s rotation throughout the season, Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes. While Harvey’s spot isn’t yet “in peril,” per Sherman, the Mets will have a decision to make soon between him and fellow righty Zack Wheeler when left-hander Jason Vargas returns from the disabled list. That’s assuming Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom and Steven Matz stay healthy, of course, and that Wheeler continues to perform well after enjoying a seven-inning, two-hit, one-run season debut against the Marlins earlier this week.

Travis d’Arnaud To Undergo Tommy John Surgery; Kevin Plawecki Placed On Disabled List

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Mets catcher Travis d’Arnaud, who’d previously been diagnosed with a partial tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, will undergo Tommy John surgery next week, the team announced on Friday.

Additionally, the Mets placed Kevin Plawecki on the 10-day DL due to a hairline fracture in his left hand, selected the contract of Jose Lobaton from Triple-A Las Vegas and optioned out righty Jacob Rhame in place of outfielder Brandon Nimmo.

To make room on the 40-man roster for Lobaton, d’Arnaud was placed on the 60-day DL. Plawecki is expected to be out three to four weeks, the team told reporters (Twitter link via Mike Puma of the New York Post).

Suffice it to say, it’s been a devastating 48 hours for the Mets, who just days ago were counting on d’Arnaud and Plawecki to shoulder the entirety of their catching work in 2018. Now, they’ll be without Plawecki for perhaps a month’s time, while d’Arnaud will be lost for the whole season. In their stead, the Mets will turn to Lobaton and Double-A backstop Tomas Nido to handle immediate catching duties. Lobaton is in tonight’s lineup.

However, for a club that started 10-1, the Mets understandably aren’t keen on merely relying on depth pieces and journeyman stopgaps as they await the return of Plawecki, who, while he has shown promise in the past, is no sure bet for a productive campaign.

To that end, the Mets are already on the lookout for catching help, per multiple reports. Anthony DiComo of MLB.com tweets that a small-scale move — something along the lines of a pickup of recently designated veteran Miguel Montero — could be in play for the Mets. FanRag’s Jon Heyman, meanwhile, tweets that the Mets are “seriously” looking at adding a catcher, though GM Sandy Alderson, at least publicly, spoke to the contrary (Twitter links via DiComo and Puma).

Alderson indicated that his club will “be aware” of what is available on the catching market but is not actively pursuing a Major League catching addition. Puma notes that Alderson did suggest that trades are more plausible early this season than in other years because of the number of teams that “aren’t trying that hard.”

One move that seems decidedly unlikely is a swap for J.T. Realmuto. DiComo and Newsday’s Tim Healey have both thrown significant cold water on the possibility, downplaying the notion that the Mets would be able to put together a sufficient package and also downplaying the Marlins’ willingness to move him. Healey notes that the Mets and Marlins haven’t spoken about Realmuto at all this week, noting that offseason talks for the star catcher failed to gain any traction.

More emphatically, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com tweets that the Marlins don’t have any intention of dealing Realmuto while he’s rehabbing from injury and, in the grander scope of things, don’t even plan on making him available at all this season. It seems that the Fish would prefer to hold Realmuto through the end of the 2018 season and market him again next winter when a wider base of clubs could likely inquire about his services. Of course, such plans can always change at the deadline if a few contenders find themselves with an acute need, thus creating the basis for a bidding war, but for the time being it doesn’t sound as if a Realmuto trade is even worth speculating upon.

As far as depth options go, the Mets have already acted quickly to pursue one such addition. Former Mets backstop Johnny Monell announced today on Instagram that he’s signed a new minor league deal with the team and will return to the club. The 32-year-old logged 57 plate appearances for the 2015 Mets and is a lifetime .278/.350/.460 hitter in parts of five seasons in Triple-A, which is where he’ll be headed.

Kevin Plawecki Has Hairline Fracture In Left Hand

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10:10am: The Mets confirmed that Plawecki did indeed suffer a harline fracture in his left hand. Initial X-rays last night were negative, but a Friday morning MRI revealed the break (Twitter link via Newsday’s Tim Healey). He will not require surgery.

There’s been no timeline given on the injury, though SNY’s Steve Gelbs tweets that Plawecki could be out for as little as three weeks. That’d seem to be a surprisingly quick turnaround for a fracture in his catching hand, but if that timeline holds true, then the Mets may not feel much pressure to make a significant catching acquisition.

9:25am: In a staggering stroke of bad luck, the Mets look to have lost their top two catchers in a span of just two days. Mike Puma of the New York Post reports that just a day after Travis d’Arnaud was diagnosed with a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, Kevin Plawecki has been diagnosed with a fractured left hand after being hit by a pitch in last night’s game. Mets manager Mickey Callaway said after last night’s contest that initial X-rays on Plawecki’s hand were negative, though it seems that further testing may have revealed the reported fracture.

Puma adds that veteran Jose Lobaton will join Tomas Nido on the big league roster — he’ll require a 40-man move — though clearly the Mets will be on the lookout for additional options. Miguel Montero jumps to mind as one readily available backstop, as he was only just designated for assignment by the division-rival Nationals earlier this week. When looking at some remaining free agents a couple of weeks ago, I noted that Ryan Hanigan, Derek Norris, Carlos Ruiz and Geovany Soto were also without a contract at the time. (Chris Herrmann and Cameron Rupp, each also listed there, have since signed deals with the Mariners and Rangers.)

The Mets, to the surprise of many, are off to the best start of any team in baseball. Their 10-1 record gives them the best winning percentage of any club in the Majors, and their +24 run differential ranks fourth in the game. Given that excellent start to the season, it seems unlikely that the Mets will be content to merely rely on depth options in the event that Plawecki needs to miss a substantial period of time.

That said, there also aren’t going to be many clubs looking to part with a catcher at this time. J.T. Realmuto was available for much of the offseason, but he’d come with an extremely steep asking price and is currently on the DL with a lower back injury for the division-rival Marlins (though he has begun a minor league rehab assignment).

An intriguing and more plausible fit could be a match with the Red Sox, who opened the year with three catchers — Christian Vazquez, Sandy Leon and Blake Swihart — on the big league roster. Vazquez is the team’s long-term answer after signing an extension this offseason, and the club has previously gone with Leon as a backup option over Swihart, who is out of minor league options and has been relegated to a utility role. A deal for Swihart, once one of the game’s top prospects, would certainly be a more appealing option than piecing the catching corps together with minor league journeymen for the foreseeable future.

Likewise, the Brewers could soon find themselves with three catchers on the roster — two of whom are out of options. Manny Pina has emerged as the starter in Milwaukee over the past year, but backups Jett Bandy and Stephen Vogt are each out of minor league options. A spring shoulder injury for Vogt temporarily delayed an inevitable decision for the Brewers, but Vogt is rehabbing the shoulder and hoping to return before month’s end. It’s not clear that Bandy is a marked upgrade over any internal options the Mets have, but Vogt does have a fairly solid big league track record.

A smaller-scale move to pick up someone such as Rupp from the Rangers could make sense as well. The former Phillies backstop signed a minor league pact there just over a week ago and reported to Triple-A Round Rock, though perhaps the organization would allow him to pursue a big league opportunity elsewhere, or at least consider trading him for cash considerations. The Braves possess some depth in the form of recently outrighted veteran Chris Stewart, and they’ll likely have to remove Carlos Perez from the roster once Tyler Flowers is healthy. The D-backs, meanwhile, are carrying Alex Avila, Jeff Mathis and John Ryan Murphy, though Avila won’t be going anywhere after signing a two-year deal this winter. Colorado’s Tom Murphy is another speculative fit, as he’s been displaced on the big league roster by Chris Iannetta and Tony Wolters. And it might be worthwhile for the Mets to see if the cost-conscious Rays, off to a dreadful start, would part with impending free agent Wilson Ramos.

Travis d’Arnaud Diagnosed With Partial UCL Tear

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Mets catcher Travis d’Arnaud has been placed on the 10-day DL, the team announced. He has been diagnosed with a partial tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, Tim Britton of The Athletic tweets.

Needless to say, that’s not good news for the backstop, who has dealt with a long run of injuries in his relatively short MLB career. Youngster Tomas Nido has been called up to take his spot on the active roster.

At the moment, it isn’t clear just what the course of treatment will be for d’Arnaud. But it is possible he’ll require surgery, per Britton. If it turns out he needs a Tommy John procedure, it would likely cost d’Arnaud the remainder of the season.

UCL injuries are not as devastating for position players as they are for pitchers, of course. But a full replacement would still mean a lengthy rehab timeline. Miguel Sano, for instance, missed the rest of the 2014 season after undergoing a TJ fix at the beginning of March.

At times, d’Arnaud has shown plenty of promise in the majors — especially with a .268/.340/.485 slash in his 268 plate appearances in 2015. But he has never returned to that level of productivity with the bat. In the three seasons since, d’Arnaud carries a .244/.297/.393 slash.

Entering the current season, the plan was for the Mets to share time between d’Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki. Now, the latter figures to occupy the primary duties behind the dish. He, too, has shown promise at times but hasn’t fully established himself as a regular to this point.

For the time being, at least, Nido will have a shot to show he, too, belongs. The former eighth-round pick, who turns 24 on Thursday, is said to be profile as a quality defender but has a less-than-certain offensive profile. Nido touched the majors last year but spent most of the season at Double-A, where he hit .232/.287/.354 over 404 plate appearances.

It’s possible that the Mets could eventually turn to Jose Lobaton, a veteran of eight MLB campaigns. The switch-hitting career reserve is available at Triple-A after signing a minors deal over the winter. Of course, he is also coming off of a brutal (.170/.248/.277) season at the plate.

The injury certainly casts some doubt on d’Arnaud’s future in the organization — particularly if it spurs a UCL replacement. He is earning $3.475MM this year with one more season of arbitration eligibility remaining.

Mets Promote Corey Oswalt, Option Brandon Nimmo

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The Mets announced a move today to add a fresh arm to their roster. The organization called up righty Corey Oswalt and cleared an opening with the somewhat surprising decision to option outfielder Brandon Nimmo.

Oswalt earned his way onto the 40-man roster with a good effort in 2017. The 2012 seventh-rounder worked to a 2.28 ERA in 134 1/3 innings at the Double-A level, recording 8.0 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9.

Whatever his future may hold as a starter, Oswalt will begin his MLB career by providing some depth in the bullpen. With Zach Wheeler set to be activated soon, though, Oswalt’s stay may not last long.

What’s most interesting about this move, perhaps, is the fact that Nimmo is the player who’ll end up being sent down. The 25-year-old impressed in 2017, in camp, and in the first several games of the current season. But he was pushed out of a clear role with the return of Michael Conforto.

With Conforto and Jay Bruce also representing lefty outfield bats, Yoenis Cespedes taking everyday time in left, and Juan Lagares functioning as a righty-hitting fourth outielder there just wasn’t a strong need for Nimmo. He’ll get regular action at Triple-A while awaiting another opportunity to stake a claim to a more permanent job at the game’s highest level.

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