Amid their struggles, the New York Mets have made a flurry of moves with their pitching staff over the last week.
They began by moving starting pitcher Frankie Montas to the bullpen and promoting pitching prospect Nolan McLean from Triple-A Syracuse. McLean will debut in Major League Baseball on Saturday at Citi Field against the Seattle Mariners.
On Friday night, the National League East club designated right-hander Paul Blackburn for assignment, per a report from MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo.
Mets Move on From Pete Blackburn
The Mets acquired Blackburn from the Athletics at last year’s trade deadline, and he made five starts with his new team before landing on the injured list with a right hand contusion. In those five games, Blackburn had a 76 ERA+ and 31 hits allowed in 24.1 innings.
“Despite the rough landing in Queens, the Mets tendered him a contract for 2025, his final arb season before reaching free agency,” Darragh McDonald of MLB Trade Rumors wrote late Friday night about the Mets’ decision to let Blackburn go.
“The Mets seemed interested in stockpiling rotation depth. They signed Sean Manaea, Clay Holmes, Frankie Montas and Griffin Canning, adding to a rotation mix which already included Senga, David Peterson, Tylor Megill and Blackburn. The Mets and Blackburn avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $4.05MM salary for this year.”
Blackburn missed the first two months of the 2025 season with right knee inflammation, returning to New York on June 2. Nearly a month later, he was back on the injured list with a right shoulder impingement. After a rehab assignment, the Mets reinstated him three days before cutting ties with the veteran.
“This move ends a strange Mets tenure for Blackburn. He was technically with the club for over a year, but only made 12 appearances in orange and blue,” wrote McDonald. “It often seemed like the Mets were on the verge of nudging him out the door before it finally happened.”
Which Teams Need an Extra Arm?
The adage in professional baseball is that a team can never have enough arms within its pitching staff. While Blackburn has not had the best results over the last few seasons, several clubs could use a middle-relief pitcher for the end of August and September.
“Still, decent starting pitching is hard to find after the deadline, so perhaps Blackburn will find some interest,” wrote McDonald. “If he clears waivers, the Mets will remain on the hook for the rest of his salary. At that point, another club could sign him and pay him the prorated portion of the league minimum salary for any time spent on the roster. That amount would be subtracted from what the Mets pay.”
With the additions of Carlos Carrasco and Erick Fedde, the Atlanta Braves have already shown a willingness to take on pitchers who can eat innings for them during the regular season. The Minnesota Twins could use some reinforcements after trading away their best relievers at the deadline.
Blackburn may have to settle for a minor league contract to prove he still has stuff that can induce outs in the Major Leagues.
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