Mets designate Corey Oswalt and Ali Sanchez for assignment

The Mets have designated right-handed pitcher Corey Oswalt and catcher Ali Sánchez for assignment to make room on their 40-man roster for new acquisitions Albert Almora Jr. and Khalil Lee, respectively. Both Oswalt and Sánchez will be exposed to waivers as a result.

Drafted by the Mets back in 2012, Oswalt has struggled in his limited time at the major league level over the past three seasons. In total, he’s pitched 84.1 innings with a 6.19 ERA and 5.67 FIP across 23 appearances, thirteen of which were starts.

Sánchez has just ten plate major league appearances to his name, all of which came last year during the shortened 2020 season, which included expanded rosters. He did not rank in our list of the Mets’ top 25 prospects heading into the 2021 season, but it’s somewhat surprising that he was designated for assignment before Patrick Mazeika.

The Mets will need to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Jonathan Villar, too, when that signing becomes official.