The New York Mets‘ have had a revolving door at the catching position this season. Francisco Álvarez has maintained the starting role when he has been healthy, but his backups have varied.
Omar Narváez and Tomás Nido were once the Venezuelan native’s backup, but they were both designated for assignment, and Luis Torrens has taken over as the backup.
However, this past weekend, Torrens had to be placed on the paternity list, resulting in the blue and orange calling up a journeyman catcher who had been designated for assignment after Torrens had been reactivated.
The Mets have designated Joe Hudson for assignment
According to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, the Mets have designated Joe Hudson for assignment.
Hudson caught a half-inning this past weekend, marking his return to the major leagues for the first time in four years. The 33-year-old has played in 18 big league games over the course of his 13-year professional career, going five-for-30 with a double and two walks.
The Florida native has slashed .237/.392/.441 across 21 games with Triple-A Syracuse with three home runs and nine RBIs. The blue and orange will have a week to either allow Hudson to pass through waivers outright, trade, or release him.
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What does this mean for the Mets?
While there is still a chance Hudson just returned to Triple-A Syracuse, there is a very real possibility that the 33-year-old’s time in the Mets organization has come to a conclusion.
This does cause a bit of concern, as the blue and orange now lack organizational depth at the catching spot, with opening-day backup Narváez alongside the Triple-A tandem of Nido and Hudson gone.
Perhaps the Mets will examine the waiver wire themselves over the upcoming weeks to regain some of that depth and even consider trading for a catcher.
Time will tell what the blue and orange do, but given the amount of wear and tear the catcher position endures, it may be best to try adding one if they can.