Minter to miss rest of '25 after opting for left lat muscle surgery

PHOENIX -- A.J. Minter, the Mets’ most significant bullpen upgrade this winter, is done for the season after deciding to undergo surgery to repair his left lat muscle, manager Carlos Mendoza said before Monday’s series opener against the D-backs.

Minter, who signed a two-year, $22 million deal in January, was excellent out of the gate in his Mets debut. He posted a 1.64 ERA and one of the game’s best strikeout rates (31.8%), but that run lasted only 13 appearances.

He’s been one of the game’s best lefty relievers since he debuted in 2017, posting a 3.23 ERA over 397 appearances, but this is the second straight season he will miss significant time. Last year in his eighth season with the Braves, Minter posted a 2.62 ERA but missed the final month and a half of the season plus the playoffs after having surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left hip.

Because he was returning from surgery, the Mets were cautious with his ramp-up this spring and had only thrown him back-to-back days twice in the season’s first month.

"Here we are facing an injury with a guy we even tried to protect, big-time,” Mendoza said last week. “We tried to give him proper rest, and he still went down.”

In Minter’s absence, the Mets were expecting to rely more heavily on Danny Young, the only other left-hander in their bullpen at the time of Minter’s injury. But Young went down April 26 and needs to have Tommy John surgery.

Veteran lefty Génesis Cabrera, who was signed to a Minor League deal last November, had his contract selected on Thursday and is currently the only lefty in the Mets’ bullpen.

The organization has another veteran lefty at Triple-A Syracuse in Anthony Gose, who’s off to a strong start.

The Mets have also signed veteran lefty Brooks Raley, who’s nearly 12 months removed from Tommy John surgery and could become an option later this season. Raley is set to begin facing hitters in the “next couple weeks,” according to Mendoza.

Minter’s deal included an opt-out after this season, but his injury all but ensures he will not exercise it.