It sure seems like the NY Mets have already upgraded the roster with recent promotion

The New York Mets could use a few more letters than just SOS to get through the remainder of this season. Some recent roster shuffling included a search for a right-handed bat to use exclusively against left-handed pitchers. Austin Slater’s time came to a quick close. Nick Morabito showed the Mets nothing at the plate. In came Eric Wagaman who, after a short stint with the team earlier this year, is finally getting some playing time.

The addition of Wagaman had zero fans running through a wall. The Mets claimed him off of waivers on April 27 and after tearing up Triple-A pitching with a .372/.462/.581 slash line in 52 chances, he’s right back. In his first start on Wednesday, Wagaman delivered a second inning home run against Cincinnati Reds lefty Andrew Abbott.

Achieving exactly what he was supposed to do, his success last year, positional versatility, and early declaration that he can be a possible solution in chance number one to start against a southpaw strongly suggests that maybe this is a successful find for the Mets.

The Mets might actually have a really good role player with Eric Wagaman

Wagaman got into his first Mets game of the year at third base. Also experienced in the corner outfield and first base at the MLB level, he’s definitely cut from the same cloth as Jared Young. Both have a similar defensive profile best used as a first baseman/DH. However, in a pinch or when offense is a priority as it’ll need to be to find some bonus wins, the Mets can look to him for help elsewhere.

The DH spot right now is a bit open for the Mets. Mark Vientos is playing first base almost exclusively. Juan Soto getting healthy has him back out in left field. Wagaman and Young can combine well enough for a platoon of some kind even if it’s not ideal or desirable.

Wagaman, a 28-year-old with 3 minor league options heading into this season, is indeed someone who could be thought of as another Young, DJ Stewart, or any of those other depth pieces we got some success from in recent years. Brought in as a flier, his success against left-handed pitchers should have him remaining in the conversation for more than just the remainder of this year. Surely, the Mets will need to return to this well regularly moving forward for more than just the remainder of this season.

Last year’s numbers with the Miami Marlins show us what Wagaman can accomplish over the course of a lengthy stint in the majors. His 184 plate appearances versus lefties yielded a .283/.321/.462 slash line with 5 home runs. A .231/.282/.330 slash line versus righties wasn’t half-bad either. A 19.5% K rate was acceptable, too. Slater hit only .225 against lefties last year. He was at .188 in 2024. Needless to say, the recent results are self-explanatory.

Not about to steal anyone’s roster spot or lock himself into a permanent roster spot, Wagaman’s quick home run can’t go unnoticed for a team struggling to find power and, most of all, production against left-handed pitchers. Purely a role player on this team, maybe this one sticks.

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