The Mets have designated OF Tommy Pham for assignment, and agreed to a deal with OF Austin Slater to replace Pham on the roster.
Pham, 38, was signed to a minor-league deal in March, as he was unsigned into Spring Training despite a .245/.330/.370 slash line in 120 games with the Pirates last season. The Mets called him up on April 13 to try to serve as a righty complement to left-handed hitter Carson Benge, but he was 0-13 with a walk and seven strikeouts in 14 plate appearances over nine games.
The Mets are on the hook for his $2.25 million salary minus the minimum salary to be paid by any team that claims him, and if he clears waivers, he can reject an outright assignment and elect free agency.
Slater, 33, was designated for assignment by the Marlins last week after hitting .174 in 28 plate appearances over 12 games. He cleared waivers over the weekend, and will now join the Amazins.
The Mets will be his third team this season, as he signed a minor-league deal with the Tigers over the winter and spent spring training with Detroit before opting out of his deal and signing a one-year, $1 million deal with Miami.
Slater has a better track record of hitting left-handed pitching – it’s the reason the Yankees acquired him at the trade deadline last season – and the Mets will only be on the hook for a pro-rated portion of the MLB minimum salary while he’s on the roster.
