PHOENIX — Trevor Gott didn’t have to come far.
The Seattle Mariners had just arrived in San Francisco ahead of a series against the Giants and Gott, a right-handed reliever, was spending time with his family when he saw a missed call from general manager Jerry Dipoto.
That was when he figured it out.
“I thought something was happening,” Gott said Tuesday at Chase Field.
Gott was traded to the Mets on Monday, along with former Mets starter Chris Flexen in exchange for left-handed reliever Zack Muckenhirn. Muckenhirn had been designated for assignment earlier in the day and the Mets promptly DFA’d Flexen as well. Gott took a short flight from San Francisco to Phoenix to meet the Mets ahead of their three-game series in Phoenix against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The key part of this trade was Flexen’s salary. The Mets are paying him about $3.9 million this season after the struggling starter went 0-4 with a 7.71 ERA over 17 appearances this season (four starts).
Once a top prospect in the Mets organization, Flexen spent 2020 in Korea and looked like a different pitcher once he returned to the United States. But he was DFA’d a few weeks ago after failing to live up to his $8 million price tag. The Mets now have six days to trade him or release him.
To Gott, this showed how badly the Mets desired his right arm.
“Obviously they took on quite a bit of money, which gives me confidence,” Gott said. “It means that they wanted me, they saw something in me and I just need to go out and prove they made a good decision.”
Gott has gone 0-3 with a 4.03 ERA this season. The Lexington, Kentucky native who was drafted by the San Diego Padres out of the University of Kentucky in 2013 recently returned from a 15-day injured list stint with back spasms. He’s struggled as of late, allowing eight earned runs over his last three appearances (3 1/3 innings). But the 30-year-old had a strong start to the season, not allowing an earned run in his first six outings. In 13 outings before the injury, he went 0-1 with a 0.77 ERA (one earned run in 11 2/3 innings).
“I was throwing strikes and I was commanding all of my pitches,” Gott said. “When I’m doing that, I’m tough to hit.”
Gott was activated Tuesday and outfielder DJ Stewart was called up as well. Infielder Danny Mendick and right-hander Jeff Brigham were optioned to Triple-A Syracuse, and right-hander Denyi Reyes was designated for assignment to clear space on the 40-man roster.
“I think we reached a point with Jeff that he needed to get back,” Showalter said. “We’ve seen some good things from him but it hasn’t always been there for him. He had an option so it’s a way to keep him in the fold and acquire a pitcher that we like.”
Stewart had a slow start to the season after having a baby, a girl named Oaklyn, and dealing with a bout of COVID after the birth. But he adjusted his swing and added a toe tap, which has helped him get the ball in the air at a higher rate. The result: 16 homers and an .878 OPS with Triple-A Syracuse.
“From spring training to the start of the season, I was kind of pressing,” Stewart said. “I was thinking I could get two hits in one at-bat, which is not possible. I was kind of lunging forward. We started doing a drill to help me with posture to stay back. I liked it so much so I adjusted my swing to do that.”
FLIPPING OUT
After pitching on regular rest for only the second time this season, the Mets are once again giving the rookie right-hander an extra day off.
Kodai Senga and his patriotic ghost glove were scheduled to open the series against the Diamondbacks on Tuesday, but the Mets announced Max Scherzer as the starter instead, which puts him in line to make one more start before the All-Star break.
“Max feels good and we want to keep Senga on what we’ve been doing with him all year,” Showalter said. “It gives Max a chance to start today and before the break. It’s something he wanted to do and something we felt he was ready for.”
BRANDON, YOU’RE A FIREWORK
The Mets are 32-37 all-time on July 4, but Brandon Nimmo has always been a standout performer on America’s birthday. Coming into Tuesday, the outfielder has a .500 OPS on July 4, the highest in club history (minimum 20 plate appearances). He added to that total again, going 1-for-3 with a home run and two walks in his latest Independence Day performance on Tuesday.
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