The Mets announced that they have added 11 players on minor league deals. The Mets resigned a couple of those 11, as they were part of the Mets organization in 2020. Harol Gonzalez, Bruce Maxwell, David Rodriguez, Luis Carpio, Jake Hager and Johneswhy Fargas have returned.

The Mets added Arodys Vizcaino, Oscar de la Cruz, Jose Peraza, Mitchell Tolman and Mallex Smith to the organizational depth.

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Mallex Smith and Jose Peraza are the biggest names of the bunch. They both played in the majors during the 2020 season. Peraza hit just .225/.275/.342 over 34 games with the Red Sox. The 26 year middle infielder, never panned out like expected. The former top prospect owns a .681 career OPS.

Mallex Smith is another interesting name. He was terrible in 2020 (.133/.170/.178), but his 2018-2019 were better. The speedster is mostly known for his good defense and stolen base ability. In 2018 he stole 40 bases, followed by league leading 46 in 2019. In 2018, he managed to have a .773 OPS, pretty good for a guy without power.

Vizcaino is another one I want to write more about. The former Braves closer hasn’t pitched a lot over the last two seasons (just 4 games in 2019) due to shoulder and elbow issues. He was pitching great before the arm issues occured (2.11 ERA in 2018 and 2.83 in 2017). To me it’s worth the risk to look if he is strong enough, to return to find his old form. Solid depth and nothing to lose.

Overall depth is never bad. I like seeing the Mets resigning Harol Gonzalez. Always thought he is somewhat of an undervalued prospect. This way the Mets don’t need to protect him and still keep him around. All in all solid moves.

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Photo from CBS Sports