Mets minor league free agent signing opts out of his contract

So much for that, huh? When the New York Mets signed Jiman Choi in the offseason to a minor league deal, there was unbelievably some belief he could make the team over DJ Stewart. The Mets thought better of it. Failing to buy into his spring training production, they sent Choi down to Syracuse to begin the year where he failed to make a further case for a promotion—as if they had any extra room for yet another first baseman/DH.

In 26 games and 104 plate appearances, Choi slashed .190/.317/.357. He had previously opted into a deal at the beginning of May to remain with the Mets. This time he saw the writing in bolder letters; there’s no room at the inn here.

Mets minor league free agent signings have offered them mixed results

Taylor Kohlwey didn’t choose to leave but a slash line of .088/.162/.118 after 37 trips to the plate was enough for the Mets to send him into the ether. He quickly found his way to the Long Island Ducks.

Yolmer Sanchez hasn’t performed so well either. The 2019 Gold Glove winning second baseman is batting .164/.292/.279 through his first 144 plate appearances in Syracuse. Clearly a bit further on the depth chart than some others now, he doesn’t look like he’ll be of much use for the Mets in 2024 unless they need a warm body.

There haven't been failures all around. Jose Iglesias is now on the MLB roster after hitting .273/.309/.442 with 7 home runs and 29 RBI. Trayce Thompson, who had difficulty hitting over the Mendoza Line for a good chunk of the season, has been a major source of power for Syracuse and is approaching the .250 mark.

The Mets can pat themselves on the back for adding Ben Gamel, a veteran outfielder with an average over .300 and OBP over .400 in the minors, and even Rylan Bannon who has done a lot of things well. The versatile infielder holds a .247 batting average in 200 plate appearances but a walk-strikeout ratio of 42 to 41 has provided a .410 OBP.

Even in-season, the Mets added Mike Brosseau. More of a classic utility guy than many of his teammates, Brosseau has battled his way to a .321/.439/.568 slash line in the early going. His 1.007 OPS leads the team. Unbelievably, he has already received 98 trips to the plate.

You can never tell who will and who will not embrace what might be a final stop of their professional career. Choi’s time with the Mets organization comes to an unceremonious ending without so much as a sniff of the majors. The next question is do we call him a former Met or something else?