2 NY Mets players who've played their way onto the Opening Day roster, 2 who played their way off

Max Kranick has played his way onto the Opening Day roster

Who? If you’re still asking this question, you haven’t been paying much attention. Max Kranick was a waiver pickup last offseason whose time with the Mets in 2024 included an early season DFA from the 40-man roster and a transition from starter to reliever in the minor leagues. It seems to have been the right call. His career trajectory is much more favorable now that he is viewed as a multi-inning reliever as opposed to a starter. That doesn’t mean his days pitching in the first inning are completely over with. In case of emergency, he could always work as an opener of sorts. Let’s worry about the exact role later on.

Kranick could be an ideal match to be the long man in relief for the Mets to begin the season. Originally thought to be a duty for the loser of the Paul Blackburn vs. Griffin Canning roster battle, Kranick is a much better match. Even if this will start off as mop-up duty with maybe the occasional chance to actually appear in games where the Mets have a chance to win, we should have some confidence Kranick can piece together a quality year.

What makes him extra important is he does have those coveted minor league options remaining for another year. The Mets can milk him for all he’s worth in any appearance and send him down to the minors for a fresh arm as needed. It might be difficult for Kranick to actually stay on the 26-man roster, but a chance immediately out of spring training makes a lot of sense.

Kranick has now pitched 9.1 innings with 2 earned runs charged to him. Just one walk and 12 strikeouts tells us the 1.93 ERA is anything but luck. He has looked as good as the results say he is. Even if his Saturday outing against the Washington Nationals featured the first dent in his ERA (as it did for Clay Holmes as well), striking out a pair and throwing 12 of his 17 pitches for strikes is a positive spin on the evening.