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The New York Mets are baseball’s best team to open the 2025 season, but it’s a marathon, not a sprint.
Sitting at 21-11, the Mets have to feel pretty good about their big offseason decisions, including bringing in Juan Soto, re-signing Pete Alonso and converting New York Yankees reliever Clay Holmes into a starter.
But there’s one major area of concern that threatens to derail a magical Mets season before it really gets underway: injuries.
As of the beginning of May, the Mets have lost several pitchers to a range of ailments, including two injuries that could leave their bullpen without an effective southpaw.
“The Mets look great but are suddenly in serious need of left-handed relief help with their two main southpaws, A.J. Minter and Danny Young, revealed to have injuries that could sideline them all season,” Jon Heyman wrote for the New York Post. “The hope is that just-signed Brooks Raley helps, and they promoted Génesis Cabrera, another veteran. It’s slim pickings out there.”
After those injuries, Andy Martino of SNY reported that the Mets "are looking to trade for lefty bullpen help"
Heyman added that the Mets could look to an American League contender for to pull off that trade, assuming they slip out of contention.
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“If the injury-wrecked Orioles fall further, Keegan Akin and Gregory Soto could make sense,” per Heyman.
Akin, a six-year major-league veteran, has a 3.00 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 15 innings so far for the Orioles. Meanwhile, Soto has a 4.76 ERA with 12 strikeouts in 11.1 innings. Neither southpaw has any saves so far, but they could benefit from a change of scenery and the Mets’ pitching wizardry.
Given the available options, a middling southpaw might be the best the Mets can hope for. Luckily, they’ve built up a strong lead in the standings to open up 2025.
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Peter Chawaga is a veteran journalist covering Major League Baseball for The Sporting News. His MLB reporting has included feature interviews with commissioner Rob Manfred and Hall of Fame slugger David Ortiz, salary analysis, player rankings and more. He has covered baseball for Forbes, Yardbarker, Pitcher List, Athlon and other outlets.
With over ten years of newsroom experience, he has previously covered finance, technology, arts, and culture for newspapers, magazines, and websites nationwide. He graduated from Wake Forest University with a degree in English and journalism.
English (US)