6 pitchers who should get every inning possible this spring

5) NY Mets need to decide early if Stephen Ridings is worth keeping

Another guy the Mets picked up from the Yankees this winter was Stephen Ridings. The difference is he was a waiver claim. He hasn’t pitched much over the last three years. The minor league season was wiped out entirely in 2020. He got 29 minor league innings in 2021, 5 in the big leagues, and 2 more last season. He dealt with a shoulder impingement injury for most of last season, causing him to essentially have another last year on his resume.

Ridings doesn’t have quite as much at stake. He has minor league options and already feels like a guy who will automatically find his way onto the Syracuse roster. He’s not so much fighting for a big league roster spot. Ridings is competing against guys not on the 40-man roster. They’ll look to steal his roster spot by outpitching him this spring.

Claiming Ridings away from the Yankees was a worth risk to take. The Mets, like most teams, were hoping to add guys like him early on this offseason. The team has already DFA’d Taylor Saucedo and William Woods who joined the organization this way. Ridings could be the next, unless he can impress the team on the mound this spring.

Let’s give him lots of innings to see exactly what he can or cannot do.