QUEENS, NY — New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza will continue to keep pitcher Brandon Waddell stretched out as a starter following his demotion to Triple-A on Thursday.
“We’re going to keep him stretched out, but I could see a scenario where we might need him to be another lefty out of the bullpen,” Mendoza said on Thursday ahead of his side’s series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks. “His ability to pitch, move the ball around, throw strikes, yeah. But as of right now, we want to keep him stretched out as a starter, and then we’ll go from there.”
The Mets are rolling with Genesis Cabrera to serve as their lone southpaw arm out of the bullpen for now after their top two options face long-term shelvings. AJ Minter is facing surgery on a lat issue and was placed on the 60-day IL on Thursday, and Danny Young sprained his throwing elbow and is facing the possibility of Tommy John surgery.
Making his first appearance in the big leagues in nearly four years, Waddell went 4.1 scoreless innings and allowed three hits with four strikeouts following opener Huascar Brazoban on Wednesday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The writing was on the wall that this would be a one-and-done appearance in the majors for the 30-year-old southpaw needing a sixth starter amidst a busy portion of their schedule, which includes 13 games in as many days. But his outing at least suggests that Mendoza can turn to him in a pinch once again.
“Not only did he get the confidence that he can pitch at this level, but after that outing, against a good lineup, it’s like, ‘Hey, you can pitch here,'” Mendoza said. “You’re going to be back. This is part of the business here, and you’re going to continue to play a big role moving forward. So go down there, continue to do what you’ve been doing because we’re going to need you.”
It is a long-awaited path to consistent playing time in the majors for Waddell, who appeared in games for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Orioles, and St. Louis Cardinals for a combined 12.2 innings (11 games) between the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
