Phillies have upstaged the Yankees with laughable former NY Mets player signing

Stop laughing for a moment, New York Mets fans. It’s not just the New York Yankees picking up ex-Mets who did very little for the team. Paul Blackburn on a major league deal along with Zack Short and Ali Sanchez on minor league deals completely shifts the narrative about the team in Queens cleaning up after the one in the Bronx.

Your laughter can resume after you have one about what the Philadelphia Phillies did. On a major league contract, the Phillies have signed Zach Pop. It could very well be a split contract, the same way the Mets reunited with Richard Lovelady with the intention to DFA him and pass him through waivers. Regardless of the details, taking any sort of significant financial chance on Pop seems problematic days after you traded Matt Strahm.

Like the Yankees, Phillies are picking up the Mets scraps

Pop ended up appearing in only 1 game for the 2025 Mets. He logged 1.1 innings and allowed 3 earned runs across the plate. The Seattle Mariners cut him loose after a 13.50 ERA performance.

Along with the Mets, the Phillies have been one of the more aggressive clubs this offseason. They re-signed Kyle Schwarber. Adolis Garcia is going to be their new right fielder as they take a chance on him for a year. They signed Brad Keller to the same contract the Mets gave Luke Weaver.

As with many relievers, there’s always some sense of the unknown. Pop certainly fits the bill as someone who might need a minor change to get back on track. He’s also someone who may burn out quickly. He had a 2.77 ERA as a sophomore back in 2022.

Mets fan can grab a quick chuckle seeing another rival reach into the bottom of the barrel in an attempt to build a championship-caliber ball club. He's precisely the type of pitcher we would have assumed the Yankees would rush to sign, given their tendency to clean up on our exes.

With a 4.88 ERA in the majors, it's curious Pop would get a major league contract of any kind. Don't warn the Phillies. They must have gotten some misinformation somewhere along the lines.