Mets Morning News: Dillon Gee declares free agency, Kirk Nieuwenhuis makes NLDS roster

Meet the Mets

On the heels of a season in which he was outrighted to Triple-A Las Vegas, Dillon Gee has elected free agency. In his final year with the Mets, he made seven starts and had a 5.90 ERA.

With Juan Uribe officially unavailable for the series against the Dodgers, the Mets have named Kirk Nieuwenhuis to their roster for the opening round. Nieuwenhuis was partially chosen due to a Dodgers bullpen that is particularly righty-heavy.

With Steven Matz's status still up in the air, Sean Gilmartin is being brought to Los Angeles as an insurance policy should Matz not be ready. On the other hand, Carlos Torres has been dispatched to Florida.

Wilmer Flores has reportedly lost ten pounds over the last two weeks. He has been dealing with strep throat. Ruben Tejada is expected to start at shortstop regardless of Flores's status.

What do comedians Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock, Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, and Jim Breuer all have in common? They're all Mets fans!

Around the NL East

Marlins first baseman Justin Bour received the National League Rookie of the Month award. Over 26 games, he posted a slash line of .290/.321/.590.

Based on a Grantland article by Ben Lindbergh, Talking Chop attempted to quantify the "meddling" of manager Fredi Gonzalez over the course of the season. The findings indicate that Gonzalez was fairly consistent in his actions across the season.

The Phillies did some house cleaning with their roster. Chase d'Arnaud, Justin De Fratus, Jordan Danks, Adam Loewen, Ken Roberts, Erik Kratz, and Jonathan Pettibone were all outrighted off the 40-man roster.

Federal Baseball recapped the decision-making process that went into the firing of Nationals manager Matt Williams.

Around MLB

Jake Arrieta dominated, and the benches cleared as the Cubs defeated the Pirates 4-0 in the National League Wild Card game. The Cubs advance to face the Cardinals in the division series.

Yasiel Puig will be on the Dodgers' roster for the NLDS against the Mets. However, he is unlikely to start over Carl Crawford or Andre Ethier. Puig appeared in just 79 games during the regular season.

Teams are putting together their rotations for the upcoming division series. John Lackey will be starting Game 1 for the Cardinals. St. Louis is optimistic that Yadier Molina will be ready for the opening round. The catcher has been dealing with an injured thumb.

Blue Jays shortstop Troy Tulowitzki admitted that he is not pain-free. He suffered a fracture in his scapula during a collision with Kevin Pillar in September.

Yesterday at AA

Ketul Shah speculated as to what Juan Uribe's injury could be, and how long it might have him on the bench.

Rich Resch detailed the homegrown nature of the Mets' playoff roster. The Mets are expected to carry 15 players who were either drafted by the team, or signed as an international free agent.

This Date in Mets History

In 2000, Bobby Jones pitched a complete game shutout against the Giants in the first round the playoffs. The win, was the series clinching one for the Mets in the NLDS.