3 players we hope the front office doesn't force onto the roster like they did with Daniel Vogelbach

You might have more in common with Buck Showalter than you realized. As we recently learned, the former New York Mets manager was just as puzzled by the team holding onto Daniel Vogelbach after the trade deadline as everyone else. More so, he wasn’t the one responsible for starting him. That was a Billy Eppler original.

This revelation explains a lot about how Eppler operates. He carried Darin Ruf on the Mets roster up until the final cuts took place in the spring. Justifying that move was a little too impossible. At least Vogelbach played well in 2022.

Although Eppler has now resigned, it may not save us from any of these players being forced onto the roster the same way Vogelbach was.

Trevor Gott

Trevor Gott didn’t end up as a complete waste of roster space for the Mets. However, much of his success came when the team was already out of the playoff race and just trying to get through the year. He ended with a 4.34 ERA in 29 innings for the team. His 100 ERA+ on the year combined with what he did as a member of the Seattle Mariners proves just how incredibly average he was.

There should be little doubt Gott returns next year because of the way he ended up in New York. The Mets willingly took on Chris Flexen and his contract that they ate in order to land Gott. Because they didn’t cut ties with him either through DFA or trade, one could come to the assumption that he’ll be back in 2024.

It’s not outrageous, but seems to match up perfectly well with the Vogelbach situation. Gott was okay. At his best, it’s pretty much what he is capable of.

Gott is the Vogelbach of the Mets bullpen right now. Another pitcher Eppler added this year feels more like the Ruf. The team can’t possibly spin it for this next guy to stick around, right?

Phil Bickford

Amid all of the selling, the Mets actually did add at the trade deadline, too. Phil Bickford and Adam Kolarek were acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers for cash. Both were on the DFA bubble already so it was more of a payment to not have to go through the waiver process or seek them out in free agency.

Bickford was even less impactful than Gott as he came to the team after they had already waved the white flag. He somehow ended up in almost as many innings as Gott despite the later start. Bickford would go on to toss 25.1 frames for the Mets and finish with a 4.62 ERA. He was a below-average arm that only made sense for the ball club to add to help them get through the year.

Bickford has one huge knock against him in terms of staying with the Mets. He doesn’t have any more minor league options. A player of his skill doesn’t have room on the big league roster. The Mets can point toward some success Gott had and even point at the financial implications for reasoning. What does Bickford have going for him other than age?

The Mets can only afford to have one pitcher on the Opening Day roster without minor league options and some questions. Is Bickford the guy? Please, don’t force this on us.