The Mets trade deadline addition with the most disappointing finish

Coming over from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for Mark Canha, Justin Jarvis went from a barely top 30 prospect to a guy in the middle of his new organization’s rankings. It showed how much better the Brewers farm system was than the New York Mets. It may have deceived us a little bit into thinking Jarvis was much closer to major league-ready than he actually is.

Jarvis made his way to Triple-A Nashville with the Brewers before the trade. The limited experience he had raised some questions. He had already not been a terrific pitcher in past years but perhaps it was his 2022 success that helped put him on the map.

In need of some MLB-ready arms for next season, Jarvis seemed like a worthy acquisition by the Mets in exchange for Canha. Unfortunately, he had the most disappointing finish of any prospect they added at the trade deadline.

NY Mets prospect Justin Jarvis is playing his way out of the team’s top 30

After going 0-2 with a 10.80 ERA in 3 starts for Nashville, Jarvis followed it up with 9 more starts and not much better results for Syracuse. He was 0-5 with an 8.04 ERA for the Mets’ Triple-A squad.

Many of the same problems continued. He allowed 12.4 hits per 9 and walked batters at a horrendous rate of 6.3 per 9. The strikeouts were there, fortunately. But with a 2.074 WHIP during his time with the Mets organization, Jarvis is doing a good job of making himself an afterthought and easy pass when it comes to adding him onto the 40-man roster prior to the Rule 5 Draft.

It’s this stage of the offseason when the Mets might have to risk letting Jarvis go for nothing at all. He is Rule 5 eligible and unless they protect him on the 40-man roster, teams are free to snatch him up. The good news is that any team who might select him will have to carry Jarvis on the MLB roster all year or return him to the Mets where they are free to stash him in the minor leagues.

Jarvis hasn’t proven he even belongs in Triple-A let alone the majors. He’s the kind of prospect a team might risk taking on and seeing if there’s anything there. However, it feels increasingly less likely they’d have enough room for him all year in 2024. Rosters might be one spot bigger and yet the deadweight often goes noticed.

Jarvis will turn 24 in February which puts him at a good age to figure things out with a full season of Triple-A ball next year. Will he get a chance to do so with the Mets? There’s more risk for New York to leave him unprotected than for a team to pursue him in the Rule 5 Draft and cut ties if things don’t work which, based on his 2023 conclusion, don’t look like they’re ready to.