Mets find lots appealing about new reliever Trevor Gott
Mariners relief pitcher Trevor Gott winds up to throw to the Rangers in the sixth inning of a game on June 4 in Arlington, Texas. Credit: AP/Tony Gutierrez
PHOENIX — Players who get traded say it all the time: Amid the life-changing whirlwind of such circumstances, they take comfort in the compliment that a team thought highly enough of him to go out of its way to acquire him.
In the case of righthander reliever Trevor Gott, who joined the Mets in Arizona on Tuesday, that is even more true. They wanted Gott badly enough that they agreed as part of the deal with the Mariners to take on Chris Flexen and his nearly $4 million in remaining salary, even though they had no interest in him — designating him for assignment immediately after the trade.
“When a team comes and gets somebody, it means they want him,” Gott said. “Obviously, they took on quite a bit of money, which gives me confidence. It means they wanted me, they saw something in me. [Now I want to] go out and prove to them they made a good decision.”
To clear a roster spot for Gott, the Mets demoted righthander Jeff Brigham to Triple-A Syracuse. Brigham impressed manager Buck Showalter enough upon his mid-April call-up that he worked his way into some high-leverage situations. But he struggled lately and has a 5.16 ERA on the season.
Hence the addition of Gott, a well-traveled 30-year-old with a career 4.70 ERA in parts of eight seasons. The Mets are his sixth team.
“He can help us,” Showalter said.
Specifically, the Mets like Gott’s cutter, a relatively new pitch that he has thrown a personal-high 40% of the time this season.
“That’s the thing that’s been most attractive,” pitching coach Jeremy Hefner said.
Gott also doesn’t walk many batters and Hefner said “there’s some things that we can do” to help him throw harder. His fastball has averaged 93-94 mph this year.
Since Gott is eligible for arbitration for the 2024 season, if the Mets like what they see these next few months, they can keep him as a relatively inexpensive bullpen piece.
With Seattle, Gott had a 1.75 ERA through the end of May. But his three games since then — one before he was sidelined with a lower back injury, two since returning — caused his ERA to more than double to 4.03.
“I was throwing strikes, I was commanding all my pitches,” Gott said of his early-season success. “When I’m doing that, I’m tough to hit.”
As the rotation turns
The Mets flipped Max Scherzer and Kodai Senga in the rotation order, with Scherzer pitching Tuesday and Senga going Wednesday.
That apparently long had been the plan. The Mets just didn’t announce it until Tuesday afternoon.
Among the benefits: Scherzer will start twice this road trip, including Sunday against the Padres, the last game before the All-Star break. And it affords Senga extra rest this turn through the rotation, as well as avoids him having to pitch on regular rest Sunday.
Personnel news
The Mets made a bench swap, calling up corner outfielder/first baseman DJ Stewart from Syracuse and sending utility man Danny Mendick back in his place.
Stewart batted .229 with a .878 OPS in the minors and had been even better lately, hitting seven home runs in his past 19 games.
The Mets also designated righthander Denyi Reyes for assignment.
Extra bases
Jose Quintana (rib surgery) is expected to throw 75-80 pitches in another rehab start for Triple-A Syracuse on Thursday, Showalter said. He also is lined up to pitch in a simulated game next week and make his Mets debut in the first turn through the rotation after the All-Star break . . . On Independence Day, Senga was as decked out in U.S. gear as any Met, including a red, white and blue glove and headband and stars-and-stripes socks and hat.
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
