NY Mets victory lap over the Braves for November roster dump remains on hold

After the spring training he had, New York Mets fans were all stretched out and limber, ready to overtake the Atlanta Braves with a victory lap. This is, of course, in reference to Griffin Canning who was sent to the Braves from the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for Jorge Soler. A deal that ended with the Braves non-tendering Canning for the sake of dumping Soler’s salary was a bit peculiar but understandable. Many of us scratched our heads when the Mets signed him so early in the offseason. What did they see that we didn’t?

Canning impressed in the spring, fanning 22 batters in 14.1 innings and posting a 1.88 ERA. He was among several high-performing starting pitching performers representing St. Lucie. Clay Holmes might’ve gotten the majority of attention, but Canning’s positive results weren’t overlooked.

So far, we’ve been treated to two short outings where Canning just didn’t have enough. A loss in his debut after 5.2 innings followed by a 4+ inning performance on Saturday with 89 pitches and only 12 batters retired, he was inefficient and much less impressive than he was the first time out when he took a tough-luck loss against the Houston Astros.

Griffin Canning’s numbers aren’t so bad but he hasn’t given Mets fans reason to gloat

A 2.79 ERA in 2 starts is more than we could have asked for from the guy who led the American League in runs allowed last season. Just over a strikeout per inning, Canning has been effective in some ways and not so much in others. His 1.34 WHIP isn’t good but the .229 batting average against him is pretty good.

Canning’s early season results are closely mirroring Holmes. One less out recorded with 9.1 total innings, 10 strikeouts, and 6 walks, his 2.89 ERA hardly fairly describes how his year has gone. He has a horrendous 1.82 WHIP and a .289 batting average against him. With some disgust, we can appreciate the ERA and batting average against differing by only a decimal point.

Mets fans knew better than to lace up a pair of sneakers for too early of a celebration at the expense of the Braves. Even if their 0-7 start, two worse than how we began last season, had them as the early April LOL team, understanding the opponents they had to play (San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers) had us rationally putting it on hold. Yeah, they’re a bit of a mess right now. Rubbing the fact that they cut Canning less than a month after trading for him in the offseason is on the 2025 to-do list.

Canning has looked very good at times in his two starts despite a loss and an early loss in what became a no-decision thanks to the bats livening up late. As the Braves fumble around in early April at 1-8, we’ll put a pause on sending an order of salt to their home with firm instructions of rubbing it in their wounds.