Mets Execute Last-Minute Roster Moves Amid National League Wild Card Race

The Mets enter the final two games of the regular season tied with the Cincinnati Reds for the last NL wild-card berth and must gain a game because Cincinnati holds the tiebreaker. In a flurry of roster moves the club designated veteran reliever Kevin Herget for assignment, selected rookie right-hander Dylan Ross for a major-league call-up, placed third baseman Brett Baty on the 10-day injured list with a right oblique strain, recalled Jared Young, and outrighted Jose Siri and Richard Lovelady. Ross, a 2022 draftee with a 1.69 ERA and three saves at Triple-A Syracuse, represents a desperate bid to shore up a bullpen that has frequently unraveled late in games. The bullpen’s struggles underpin the Mets’ collapse this season—team ERA is middling overall and has spiked since mid-June, with 28 blown saves and high-profile failures such as Ryan Helsley’s rough run—forcing reliance on rookies like Nolan McLean, Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat. The teams also flirted with other deadline moves earlier in the year—New York and the Yankees reportedly discussed a Trent Grisham-for-Brett Baty swap that never materialized—and Baty’s breakout campaign was interrupted by the oblique issue. Elsewhere, the Orioles recalled lefty Grant Wolfram and placed Dietrich Enns on the paternity list as they shift toward evaluating bullpen depth for next season.