The Mets announced a large slate of roster moves this morning, most notably placing righty Reed Garrett on the 15-day injured list due to a sprain in his right elbow. New York also selected the contract of righty Wander Suero from Triple-A Syracuse, designated right-hander Dom Hamel for assignment, recalled righties Huascar Brazoban and Chris Devenski from Syracuse and placed lefty Sean Manaea on the paternity list.
There’s no immediate timetable for Garrett’s return, but the 15-day IL placement ends his regular season. Taking a step back, any news of an elbow sprain — which by definition signifies stretching/tearing of a ligament — is an ominous development for a pitcher. That’s especially true in the case of Garrett, who only recently returned from a two-week IL stay due to inflammation in that same elbow. Presumably, manager Carlos Mendoza will have more information prior to this afternoon’s game against the Padres.
Garrett’s loss is a notable one for a Mets relief corps that has struggled amid what increasingly looks like a late-season collapse. They still hold the final NL Wild Card spot, but the Mets have dropped 10 of their past 13 games and only recently snapped a disastrous eight-game losing streak. The Mets are just 16-27 since the trade deadline passed — a .372 winning percentage that effectively matches the season-long mark of the rebuilding White Sox.
Shoddy bullpen work has been a critical factor. Mets relievers have posted a collective 4.76 ERA since Aug. 1 — the sixth-worst mark in the majors. The typically steady Garrett has contributed to those woes, yielding a run per inning over the course of a dozen frames in that time. It stands to reason that those struggles are tied directly to his elbow injury; Garrett was sporting a tidy 2.45 ERA in 47 2/3 frames before being shelled for eight runs in a span of five appearances and heading to the injured list. He was effective for the ’24 Mets as well, logging 57 2/3 innings with a 3.77 ERA and huge 33.6% strikeout rate.
At the very least, Garrett will be sidelined into a potential Wild Card series. His IL placement is retroactive to Sept. 15. In theory, he could return on Sept. 30, which is the first day of MLB’s Wild Card round of postseason play. A minimum stay for an elbow sprain is quite rare, however, and the fact that this is his second elbow-related IL stint in three weeks does little to quell concerns about a long-term absence.
The 32-year-old Garrett crossed two years of big league service time earlier this season and will be arbitration-eligible for the first time this winter, as a clear Super Two player (2.143 years of service). He’s under club control through the 2029 season.
With Garrett shelved, the Mets will add Suero back to the major league roster. They claimed him off waivers from Atlanta last month, but Suero didn’t actually pitch in a game with the Mets before being designated for assignment and outrighted to Syracuse upon clearing waivers. He’s been tagged for eight runs in just 6 1/3 big league innings this season but was a frequently used bullpen arm for the Nationals from 2018-20, when he pitched 142 2/3 innings of 4.10 ERA ball with solid strikeout and walk rates.
Suero has struggled in limited big league work since that brief peak with Washington, but he’s been exceptional in Triple-A this season. The 34-year-old righty has tossed a pair of scoreless innings with the Mets’ Syracuse affiliate, adding to an impressive stretch with the Braves’ Triple-A club in Gwinnett. Between those two stops, he’s piled up 48 2/3 innings with a sparkling 1.29 ERA, a 32.5% strikeout rate and a 6.6% walk rate. Even with the lack of recent big league success, it’d be hard to say Suero hasn’t earned himself another look in the majors with this year’s Triple-A dominance.
As Suero rejoins the 40-man roster, the 26-year-old Hamel will lose his spot. The Mets selected Hamel with their third-round pick in 2021, and he made his big league debut just last night, tossing a scoreless inning against San Diego. (Granted, Hamel faced six batters and yielded three hits along the way.) The 6’2″ righty has had a rough season in Syracuse, totaling 67 2/3 innings and recording a 5.32 earned run average. Hamel fanned just over one-quarter of his opponents and notched a sharp 7.4% walk rate in Triple-A this season, but he was tagged for 1.60 homers per nine innings pitched and struggled with men on base.
Because the trade deadline has passed, the Mets’ only course of action with Hamel will be to place him on outright waivers or release waivers. The former is far likelier. He hasn’t been outrighted in the past and obviously has well under three years of big league service time, so he won’t have the right to elect free agency if he goes unclaimed. Hamel has a full slate of minor league options, which could appeal to other clubs seeking depth, but he’s a 91-94 mph righty who’s been hit hard in two Triple-A seasons — which should give the Mets a decent chance of slipping him through waivers and keeping him as a depth piece.
