New York — The Mets have spent most of the early offseason strengthening their bullpen through a series of small trades. Friday, they continued to reorganize the group.
The Mets agreed to a new one-year contract with right-hander Sean Reid-Foley, avoiding arbitration, but did not tender righty Grant Hartwig or left-hander Alex Young. These two are both free agents. The Mets let go of Alex Ramírez, one of their top outfield prospects.
Although Ramírez and Hartwig were not eligible for arbitration, their departures free up 40-man roster spaces for the Mets.
The team offered contracts to all of its other arbitration-eligible players, including pitchers Paul Blackburn, Tylor Megill, and David Peterson, catcher Luis Torrens, and outfielder Tyrone Taylor.
Reid-Foley, 29, was efficient in 23 games this season, striking out 25 batters in 21 2/3 innings for a 1.66 ERA. However, he missed Opening Day due to a right shoulder impingement, which returned in June and cost him the whole second half of the season. Reid-Foley has averaged 13 and 1/3 innings per season over the last five years, owing primarily to his struggle to stay healthy.
Young, 31, has a 3.29 ERA in 14 games after the Mets claimed him off waivers from the Giants. He has changed organizations five times in the last four seasons.
Ramírez, 21, initially performed well in two Class A levels in 2022, but has subsequently posted OPS marks of.627 and.590.
Hartwig, 26, played 32 games for the Mets the previous two years but missed the second half of this season after having surgery to repair a damaged meniscus in his left knee.
Friday was the deadline for teams to tender contracts to everyone who did not have guaranteed commitments. That includes players with fewer than three years of service time, who all earn close to the Major League minimum, as well as arbitration-eligible players with two to six years of service time. Sometimes the arbitration process raises the players’ salary over what their employers believe they are worth, resulting in non-tenders.
The Mets’ only other significant non-tender candidate was Blackburn, who may not be ready for Opening Day after undergoing October surgery to correct a spinal fluid leak. Blackburn is approaching his final year of team control and will be eligible for a raise above his $3.45 million salary last season. Tendering him was a gamble, but the Mets’ desire for as much starting pitching as possible trumped any consideration of austerity.
