The New York Mets season has turned around as the blue and orange currently sit at the head of the wild-card race with a 56-50 record despite that seemingly unfathomable back in late May.
With the Mets firmly in the playoff race, president of baseball operations David Stearns has made numerous moves over the past few days to prepare for the postseason push.
On Friday, the blue and orange made a move to strengthen the bullpen by trading for Ryne Stanek. However, to make room for the flamethrower, the Mets designated a fringe bullpen arm for assignment and have now traded him to the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Mets have traded Josh Walker to the Pittsburgh Pirates
According to a post from the organization via X, the Mets have traded relief pitcher Josh Walker to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for minor-league pitcher Nicolas Carreno.
After being a 37th-round selection in the 2017 MLB draft, Walker worked his way up the Mets minor league system before debuting in 2023. The New York native struggled in his rookie campaign, pitching 10 innings across 14 appearances to an 8.10 ERA with a 1.800 WHIP and 12 strikeouts.
Walker has bounced back and forth between Triple-A and the major leagues in 2024. The 29-year-old has struggled at points in the big leagues, pitching 12.1 innings across 10 appearances to a 5.11 ERA with a 1.541 WHIP while striking out 11.
However, the left-hander has fared much better at Triple-A Syracuse, where he has pitched 28.2 innings across 25 appearances to a 2.83 ERA, 1.291 WHIP, and 39 strikeouts.
Carreno signed with the Pirates as an international free agent and has spent 2024 pitching for Pirates gold of the Dominican Summer League. The 18-year-old has pitched 21.2 innings across eight starts to a 3.74 ERA with a 1.292 WHIP while striking out 36.
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What does this mean for the Mets?
Carreno is a nice return for Walker, who has consistently struggled at the big league level and currently projects more as a quadruple-a player rather than a consistent major league reliever.
The 18-year-old is still a long way from pitching in the Mets’ rotation but should be an intriguing prospect to watch for the foreseeable future.
