Mets designate Brandon Lyon for assignment, recall Greg Burke

Following the Mets' fifteen-inning loss to the Diamondbacks this afternoon, the team designated Brandon Lyon for assignment. Lyon gave up one run in 1.1 innings this afternoon, the third of his last four appearances in which he allowed at least a run.

On June 23, Lyon had a 3.16 ERA—much better than the average National League relief pitcher—but the statistics for his entire season destroyed when he gave up six runs in two-third of an inning on Sunday afternoon. After today's appearance, Lyon has a 4.98 ERA and 3.99 FIP with mediocre rates of 6.03 K/9 and 3.41 BB/9.

The Mets also announced that they've recalled Greg Burke to take Lyon's spot in the bullpen. Burke was the odd man out in an earlier reshuffling of the roster, but he's performed fairly well when he's been in the big leagues this year. In 21.0 innings, Burke has a 3.86 ERA and 2.25 FIP.

Given the fact that the Mets played two extra-inning games in the past four days, it's not a shock that the team will continue to carry eight pitchers in the bullpen. But if Terry Collins isn't going to use Gonzalez Germen in games, they'd probably be better off with a seven-man bullpen and five-man bench.