Mets call up Thomas Szapucki, designate Jerad Eickhoff for assignment

Shortly before their series opener in Atlanta this evening, the Mets called up left-handed pitcher Thomas Szapucki and designated right-handed pitcher Jerad Eickhoff for assignment. Eickhoff made just two starts for the Mets, and while he pitched fairly well in his first start, he had a 4.50 ERA and 8.35 FIP in those two starts thanks to a rough outing against the Nationals last night.

The 25-year-old Szapucki had been with the Triple-A Syracuse Mets to start the 2021 season, and in 34.2 innings of work, he had a 4.41 ERA with 9.87 strikeouts and 5.71 walks per nine. He entered the year as the Mets’ 11th-best prospect on our list of the team’s top 25 prospects. For now, the Mets plan to use him out of the bullpen, but with Eickhoff out of the rotation and a lack of starting pitching behind Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, and Taijuan Walker, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him get a start at some point.