The Mets announced that outfielder Luis Robert Jr. has been reinstated from the 60-day injured list. The 40-man roster had a vacancy but is now full with this move. Infielder/outfielder Eric Wagaman has been optioned to Triple-A Syracuse to open an active roster spot. Will Sammon of The Athletic reported on Robert’s activation prior to the official announcement. The Mets also announced that infielder Zack Short, who was designated for assignment last week, has been outrighted to Triple-A Syracuse.
Robert was acquired in an offseason trade that hasn’t worked out. The Mets sent infielder/outfielder Luisangel Acuña and minor league pitcher Truman Pauley to the White Sox to get Robert. The Mets were surely hoping for Robert to stay healthy while he produced at a strong level but that has not happened. He hit .224/.327/.329 in 98 plate appearances before lumbar spine disc herniation put him on the IL at the end of April.
Now that he is returning, the Mets will have different hopes than they did a few months ago. At this point, they are just hoping to salvage some value in a trade before the August 3 deadline. The club is 42-58 and ten games out of a playoff spot. They have reportedly already started fielding offers for a sell-off. Robert’s contract has a $20MM club option for 2027, with a $2MM buyout, but that doesn’t look attractive since Robert has been injured and/or performing poorly for almost three whole years now.
At his best, Robert is a borderline MVP candidate. He showed that form in 2023. He stayed healthy enough to get into 145 games. He hit 38 home runs and stole 20 bases while running the ball down in center field. FanGraphs considered the whole season to be worth five wins above replacement. He finished 12th in American League MVP voting that year.
But that level of production from Robert has been rare. Due to frequent injuries, that’s his only season with more than 110 games played. Earlier in his career, he was usually putting up good numbers when healthy. But since that 2023 campaign, he hasn’t even been good when on the field. He has a .223/.292/.367 line in 954 plate appearances dating back to the start of the 2024 season.
The Mets will hope that Robert can show a glimpse of his best self between now and the deadline. For what it’s worth, he has hit .323/.400/.548 on his minor league rehab assignment, though in a small sample of 35 plate appearances. Even if he does stay hot against major league competition, teams will be skeptical due to his injury history and inconsistent track record. Still, good center fielders are hard to find, so the Mets should garner some interest. They would have to eat a notable portion of his remaining salary to facilitate a deal but should be willing to do so.
It will be interesting to watch the playing time in the near future. The outfield is fairly set with A.J. Ewing in the middle, flanked by Juan Soto and Carson Benge. Jorge Polanco has only been used as a designated hitter since he came off the IL earlier this month. Presumably, the Mets should want to have Robert out there while they are trying to drum up trade interest. That could mean some occasional off-days for those other guys, though the logjam will be alleviated if Robert is flipped elsewhere in the coming weeks.
As for Short, he has bounced around the league this year as a depth infielder. He is a .169/.270/.286 hitter in his career, so teams presumably value his glovework. The Mets have twice rostered him in a bench infield role this year. The first stint lasted a little over a week in June. He was designated for assignment and then sent outright to Triple-A Syracuse. He was added back to the roster this month but the second stint lasted less than a week.
Since Short has been previously outrighted in his career, he has the right to elect free agency. The Mets didn’t indicate today whether or not he would do so. For what it’s worth, he also had the right to elect free agency last month but decided to report to Syracuse. If he goes that route again, he can provide the club with some non-roster depth. If he hits the open market, he will likely be limited to minor league offers, based on the fact that all clubs just passed on the chance to scoop him off waivers.
Photo courtesy of Matt Marton, Imagn Images
