Mets add right-hander Kevin Herget to active roster after trade creates opening

The New York Mets moved to reshape their bullpen depth Saturday by selecting the contract of right-hander Kevin Herget from Triple-A Syracuse, according to the team’s announcement reported by MLB Trade Rumors. The transaction matters less as a headline-making splash and more as a practical roster-management step for a club that needed an active roster opening and a reliever who can be available on short notice.

Herget’s promotion came in the wake of a roster vacancy created earlier in the week. MLB Trade Rumors reported that the Mets had an open spot after trading left-hander A.J. Minter to the Minnesota Twins. With Minter no longer in the Mets organization at the big league level, New York used that availability to add another arm to the active mix, rather than waiting for a future transaction window.

Along with bringing Herget up, the Mets also made a corresponding adjustment in the bullpen. MLB Trade Rumors reported that right-hander Xzavion Curry was optioned to Syracuse to open an active roster spot. Curry’s optioning is notable because it came after he logged a substantial long-relief workload, with the report stating he threw five innings in that prior appearance and therefore would not have been immediately available for several days.

That availability timeline is a common driver behind late-season and stretch-run roster moves. When a reliever is used for multiple innings in a game, teams often have to manage the recovery and readiness window before reintroducing them to the active roster. In this case, New York moved Curry back to Triple-A to keep a stable bullpen pipeline, while using Herget as the immediate call-up option.

From a tactical standpoint, the Mets’ decision reflects a bullpen strategy that prioritizes day-to-day functionality. The active roster spot created by the Minter trade served as the opening, and the Curry optioning addressed timing constraints after the five-inning outing. In effect, the Mets traded one internal bullpen variable for another, maintaining depth while aligning roles with current availability rather than relying on a single “next-up” call.

Herget’s presence on the active roster also suggests the Mets want another right-handed relief option available for a range of game situations, including middle-inning needs and longer stints when matchups or score state call for it. While Saturday’s move did not come with additional detail in the report about specific usage plans, roster selections like this are typically designed to keep leverage opportunities and pitching choices from narrowing as the schedule tightens.

The key thing to watch next is how New York uses Herget after the promotion and whether the bullpen shuffle leads to further corresponding moves. With Curry sent back to Syracuse and Herget taking his place on the active roster, the near-term question becomes whether the Mets keep both pitchers in the organization’s bullpen rotation with alternating availability or make additional adjustments if the workload or matchups demand it.