Mets Outright Chris Devenski

The Mets have sent right-hander Chris Devenski outright to Triple-A Syracuse, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment last week.

A player has the right to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency if he has at least three years of service or a previous career outright. Devenski qualifies on both counts. He could head to the open market but there’s also an argument for staying. Since he just cleared waivers, he would surely be limited to minor league offers anyway. The Triple-A schedule ends this Sunday. Rather than spending a few days job hunting, it might be easier to report to Syracuse to try to make a few more appearances before the season is out.

The 35-year-old Devenski had some really good seasons with the Astros when he first came up. Across the 2016 and 2017 campaigns, he logged 189 innings with a 2.38 earned run average and 28.2% strikeout rate. But his results have tailed off since then, with a 5.39 ERA and 22.7% strikeout rate in 235 1/3 innings since the start of 2018.

The lesser results pushed him into journeyman mode. Since leaving Houston, he has pitched for the Diamondbacks, Phillies, Angels, Rays, Mets and Pirates. He has had brief stints with the latter two clubs this year, allowing ten earned runs in 7 2/3 innings. If he accepts the assignment, the Mets could call on him again if they need a fresh arm before the season is done.