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Mets bullpen options: 1 who won't get a chance before the trade deadline, 2 who might

Will the Mets use any of these pitchers in the bullpen before the July 30 trade deadline?

By Tim Boyle |
Houston Astros v New York Mets
Houston Astros v New York Mets / Luke Hales/GettyImages
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The New York Mets have an open competition in the bullpen. Many have fallen. Few internal options remain.

In fact, outside of something bold like calling up Brandon Sproat to the majors in what has been a dazzling year as a starter, there aren’t a whole lot of realistic options for the team to turn to among those we have yet to see.

A couple of players in Syracuse look like viable options to test on the big league roster before the trade deadline arrives. One candidate probably won’t get his chance in the next two-plus weeks while another pair could be more realistic options.

Tylor Megill is only starting rotation depth for the Mets moving forward

Keeping Tylor Megill in Syracuse stretched out to start games for the Mets is likely the direction they go. What about giving him the Jose Butto treatment and recalling the failed starter and seeing what he can deliver as a bullpen arm? Megill has shown he can get big league outs. His problems seem to be early in outings or once he gets into the fourth or fifth inning.

The early struggles this season for Megill won’t help his case to be a bullpen arm as it defeats the purpose of limiting how many innings he tosses. Pitchers don’t naturally just stink in the first inning they pitch, though. There is more to it. Megill as a reliever would be completely unpredictable but it’s worth a chance.

Don’t expect destiny to call him before the trade deadline, though. With the recent DFA of Joey Lucchesi, the Mets don’t have nearly as much starting depth as they previously did.

Shintaro Fujinami is worth a glimpse in the Mets bullpen

Shintaro Fujinami continues to work his way back to the big leagues where he has yet to appear this season. A bold free agent signing by the Mets this offseason, he was ineffective for Syracuse before landing on the IL. Things have gone much better at the lower minor league levels.

Fujinami’s return will require an additional roster move for the Mets as he’ll come back from the 60-day IL thus isn’t presently a true member of the 40-man roster. No worries. The Mets have already tried out enough relief pitchers who’ve failed and could be DFA’d to make room.

Fujinami should be forced to prove himself a little while longer in Triple-A before the Mets give him an opportunity in the big leagues. Control has been an issue for several of their pitchers this season. Fujinami’s biggest weakness as well, they shouldn’t be afraid to make him prove himself in non-rehab outings and versus superior hitters.

It’s a given that the Mets will at least test him out at some point this year. Doing so before the trade deadline seems almost necessary if only to give themselves an idea of whether or not he can be a contributor this year or not. Plenty of relief pitcher additions have been busts for the Mets. Let’s use a week in July to have an idea if he’s one of them or a guy to hold onto. 

Max Kranick could give the Mets multiple innings

Max Kranick was added this offseason as starting pitching depth for the Mets. However, an injury pushed him out of the picture and he has toiled away in Triple-A pitching mostly in relief ever since. The need for him hasn’t come up anyway. In fact, Kranick’s chances of pitching for his childhood team increases if he can excel as a reliever. 

Kranick has done well in Triple-A, pitching to a 3.53 ERA in 2 starts and 16 relief appearances. The 35.2 innings have yielded a walk rate of 3.3 per 9 and strikeouts at 7.3 per 9. He has been prone to the home run ball as many of Syracuse’s pitchers, even Christian Scott, have been. His rate is at 1.8 per 9.

Carlos Mendoza would appreciate Kranick because of his ability to go multiple innings. Despite the team having Adrian Houser, they’ve used others for more than three outs on a regular basis. One could argue it’s one of the reasons why Reed Garrett landed on the IL recently.

Kranick lucked out by receiving a fourth option year due to a service time loophole. The Mets, having already used that option on him, should at least see what he can offer. They probably won’t strike gold, however, Kranick can at least join a list of arms shuttled back and forth from the minors for the remainder of the season.

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