Mets Designate Guillo Zuñiga For Assignment

The Mets have designated right-hander Guillo Zuñiga for assignment, reports Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. That opens a roster spot for righty Matt Seelinger, who was acquired in a trade with the Tigers yesterday. It was reported at the time of the trade that Seelinger had an upward mobility clause in his deal and would therefore need a 40-man spot.

Zuñiga, 27, signed a minor league deal with the Mets in May. He logged 13 2/3 innings for Triple-A Syracuse, allowing 3.29 earned runs per nine. His 19% walk rate was awful but he struck out 28.6% of batters faced.

The Mets selected him to the roster two days ago. He made his team debut yesterday, tossing a scoreless bottom of the eighth against Atlanta, with a walk and a strikeout. That kept the Mets within a run, down 3-2. The Mets took the lead in the top of the ninth, putting Zuñiga in line for the win. Unfortunately, Devin Williams allowed Atlanta to tie the game up and go to extras, though the Mets did eventually prevail.

Zuñiga now heads into DFA limbo, which can last as long as a week. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so the Mets could take as long as five days to explore trade interest, though they could also put him on the wire sooner than that if they so choose.

The righty’s track record in the big leagues is pretty minimal. He now has 20 2/3 innings under his belt, having also pitched for the 2023 Cardinals and 2024 Angels. He has a 4.79 earned run average in that scattered action.

If he garners interest, it should be based on his stuff. His four-seamer and sinker both averaged over 97 miles per hour in his appearance with the Mets this week, as he also mixed in a slider and changeup. This has generally led to strikeouts but also walks in his minor league career. Dating back to the start of 2025, he has thrown 60 minor league innings with a 4.80 ERA, 24.1% strikeout rate and 13.5% walk rate.

He still has a minor league option remaining, which adds to his appeal for other clubs. He doesn’t have a previous career outright nor three years of big league service time, which means he would not have the right to elect free agency in the event he clears waivers in the coming days.