Before the opener of their four-game series in Miami tonight, the Mets made a few roster moves. The team placed right-handed relief pitcher Miguel Castro on the COVID-19 injured list, called up outfielder Albert Almora Jr. to take his place on the active roster, and claimed right-handed relief pitcher Jake Reed off waivers from the Rays. And the team officially lost left-handed relief pitcher Anthony Banda on waivers, as he was claimed by the Pirates.
The fact that Castro was placed on the COVID-19 injured list does not necessarily mean that he tested positive, as Tim Healey pointed out, and it’s worth noting that Castro was one of the Mets who got vaccinated back in early April. Healey also reported that the Mets have not had anyone test positive for COVID.
Almora has had a few stints with the major league team already this year and missed a fairly significant amount of time with a shoulder contusion after a scary collision with the outfield fence earlier this season. In 41 plate appearances for the Mets, he has a .075/.098/.125 line with a -39 wRC+.
Reed had spent the entirety of his professional career in the minors from 2014 until this year, having pitched in the Twins’ system for the longest and spending time in the system of the Angels, Dodgers, and Rays this year at Triple-A. The 28-year-old made his major league debut this year with six appearances for the Dodgers, and in a total of 5.1 innings, he has a 3.38 ERA. For now, he is a part of the Mets’ taxi squad.
Banda made five appearances for the Mets, all of them recently, and racked up a 7.36 ERA in 7.1 innings of work.