Just Mets

On Sunday, the Mets placed LHP Jerry Blevins on the 15-day disabled list with a fractured forearm. To replace Blevins on the active roster, the Mets have recalled RHP Hansel Robles from Triple-A Las Vegas.

Robles was off to a good start for the 51s. In five relief appearances, Robles had not allowed a run and only a walk and six hits with ten strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings, allowing only six hits with ten strikeouts.

Here is a breakdown of the move:

Robles roster status.

Robles was already on the 40-man roster, and with the 40-man roster now full after purchasing Kevin Plawecki’s contract, it made it difficult for the Mets to consider Zack Thornton for a promotion. Thornton isn’t off to a great start anyway at Triple-A, and with Robles performing, this was an easy consideration for the front office to make.

Why did the Mets pass over Jack Leathersich?

Leathersich is on the 40-man roster, he’s a lefty, and is off to a fast start in Las Vegas. He hasn’t walked a batter while striking out ten batters in only five innings of work for the 51s. He also showed good progress towards finally developing consistent command during Spring Training last month. A fair argument could be made he should be here.

However, Terry Collins said yesterday while he’s encouraged by Leathersich’s progress, it’s still unclear whether his game would translate at the big league level. In a way, Leathersich has built a filter and a perception about himself because of his command issues, so I think he needs to prove he can have consistent command for an extended period of time before the Mets decide to bring him here.

There’s a thought Leathersich’s strikeout rate will diminish and the contact rates will increase when and if he develops consistent command. Perhaps the Mets are testing that theory as they wait for a larger sample size to materialize with Leathersich, but so far, that has not been the case.

Things can change quickly, however, especially if Alex Torres doesn’t develop some more consistency and Sean Gilmartin begins to struggle at some point. And, if Leathersich continues to pitch well, he can be extremely valuable as a deceptive strikeout artist here, but time will tell.

Why not Rafael Montero?

It was clear Montero had a hard time living life as a reliever here. His approach wasn’t good in that role, and it’s almost as if he didn’t trust his secondary pitches while coming out of the bullpen here.

There was nothing mentioned about changing the plan for Montero to start on April 28 in Miami, By bringing Robles up, it’s pretty clear the Mets are going to stay the recent course they set with Montero and stretch him out as a starting pitcher.

What does this mean for Dillon Gee?

It doesn’t sound like the Mets are going to stick to a six-man rotation beyond one turn through, and with the Mets not changing the course with Montero yesterday, it probably further suggests Dillon Gee has to pitch well over his next couple of starts to hold onto his spot in the rotation.

Robles has spent multiple parts his professional career solely in relief, whereas Gee has not and had trouble adjusting to a bullpen role during Spring Training. As such, it’s fair to wonder if Gee’s time with the team could be short.