The Mets are set to select the contract of left-handed reliever Zach Muckenhirn in advance of today’s doubleheader against the Braves, reports Abbey Mastracco of the New York Daily News (Twitter link). He’s not yet on the 40-man roster. The team has not formally announced the move, so it’s not yet clear whether Muckenhirn will be up for both games of the doubleheader or just the nightcap.
Muckenhirn, 28, inked a minor league deal with the Mets over the winter and has had a strong start in Triple-A Syracuse, where he’s held opponents to one run on 10 hits and four walks in 11 2/3 frames. The former 11th-round pick (2016, Orioles) also boasts a strong 51.3% ground-ball rate, but he’s punched out just four of his 47 opponents on the year so far (8.5%).
With Brooks Raley landing on the injured list due to elbow inflammation over the weekend and David Peterson being optioned to Syracuse as well, the Mets’ only lefty on the big league roster had been Joey Lucchesi, who’s currently working out of the rotation, Muckenhirn will give manager Buck Showalter an option in the bullpen for today’s twin bill and perhaps for the foreseeable future, depending on today’s bullpen usage.
Muckenhirn has spent the majority of his career in the Orioles organization, but he was with the White Sox organization in each of the past two seasons, generally pitching well with their Double-A and Triple-A clubs. In parts of three seasons at the Triple-A level, Muckenhirn has a 3.45 ERA with a 22.2% strikeout rate, 10.1% walk rate and a 44% ground-ball rate.
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