The Mets announced a series of roster moves today, selecting the contract of infielder Jonathan Araúz and activating right-hander Phil Bickford, the latter of whom was acquired at the deadline yesterday. In corresponding moves, catcher Michael Pérez and right-hander Vinny Nittoli were optioned to Triple-A. The club already had many vacancies on their 40-man roster after making several trades in recent days.
Araúz, 24, has played parts of three seasons at the big league level. A former Rule 5 pick of the Red Sox, he’s suited up for Boston and Baltimore in the majors. The switch-hitting infielder brings plenty of defensive flexibility but has a meager .200/.269/.314 slash through 169 career plate appearances.
The Mets snagged Araúz in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 draft last offseason. He has spent the entire season at Triple-A Syracuse, hitting .244/.344/.429 across 395 trips to the plate. He’s hit 14 homers and walked at a strong 13.2% clip with a roughly average 21.8% strikeout percentage. He still has a minor league option remaining, so the Mets can bounce him between Flushing and Syracuse without putting him on waivers.
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