A pair of Mets 40-man roster spots could soon open, who snags them?

The New York Mets could be opening two 40-man roster spots in the coming days. Rule 5 Draft pick Zach Greene was designated for assignment Sunday night to clear one of them. The other, belonging to Jose Quintana, could become available if he lands on the 60-day IL. Reports of him potentially getting shut down for three months, even if this isn’t the expected length of absence, may place him on the 60-day IL. This opens up a spot for the Mets, too.

There is a bit of science when it comes to selecting players for the 40-man roster. You don’t want to unnecessarily add someone too early. This eliminates catcher Michael Perez who won’t need to be there until the Mets are ready to promote him. The same goes for outfielder Tim Locastro who we should believe isn’t getting promoted until the latter part of the year when the Mets will need him for a playoff run.

Where does this leave the team? Let’s take a look at some of the candidates.

1) Why the NY Mets could add Lorenzo Cedrola to the 40-man roster

The Mets don’t have any outfielders on their 40-man roster who won’t make the Opening Day roster. Ever since they DFA’d Khalil Lee, this has been the situation for the team. Lorenzo Cedrola, a guy we’ve seen a ton this spring, could be one of the guys they add.

Cedrola has yet to reach the majors and would profile in a similar way as Locastro. We shouldn’t expect any incredible burst of offense out of him. He’s more of a defensive option for the team and maybe an occasional pinch-runner.

Because he has all of his minor league options left, I’d put him ahead of even a guy like Abraham Almonte. Almonte would be more useful on the 40-man roster when the team actually needs him in the big leagues. 

The Mets could, of course, always keep the roster spot open and pluck from another organization’s waiver wire. Many have a Zach Greene on their roster also losing his spot.