Mets set all but one roster spot for Opening Day

David Stearns said a decision on Luisangel Acuña will come before first pitch on Thursday

New York Post

Mets President of Baseball Operations David Stearns made several announcements regarding the club’s Opening Day roster on Wednesday afternoon in Houston.

Brett Baty, Hayden Senger, Huascar Brazobán, Max Kranick, AJ Minter will all be on the active roster on Thursday, with the club still finalizing their decision on whether or not to carry Luisangel Acuña out of the gate, Stearns said.

"We know Acuña can help us here, and he's going to help us here,” Stearns explained. “It may very well be tomorrow afternoon. We just have to work through this and make sure that we're exploring all options before we set anything in stone."

According to the New York Post, the Mets re-entered the market for a right-handed hitting bat before camp broke on Monday. As such, the Mets could still be exploring the possibility of an external acquisition before rosters need to be set ahead of their first game of the season on Thursday.

If the Mets do not make an external acquisition, Acuña appears poised - for the moment anyway - to make the team out of the gate, as the Mets currently do not have a natural backup for Francisco Lindor at shortstop.

Acuña is with the Mets in Houston.

As for carrying both Kranick and Brazoban, Stearns said Paul Blackburn will begin the season on the injured list with knee soreness. Both Kranick and Brazoban were impressive during camp - Kranick had a 1.46 ERA in eight appearances and can serve as a multi-inning reliever along side José Buttó. Brazoban had a 1.69 ERA in nine appearances for the Mets during Grapefruit League play.

Regarding Minter, the Mets wanted to make sure he could pitch two games in three days without issue before deciding whether or not he would be on the roster on Opening Day.