Mets sign Yankees' 2022 WHIP leader after bizarre, unexpected cut

Lost in the shuffle of their bloated payroll, the New York Mets have dedicated themselves to picking up ex-Yankees at every opportunity since the 2022-23 offseason began.

Now, they just have to hope that one of those former Yankees is able to contribute. Tuesday's addition to the parade seems to be the best bet, especially since it's entirely unclear why New York facilitated this transaction.

First into the pool was fan favorite Stephen Ridings, the former substitute teacher with the excellent fastball who grew a bigger beard than any former Yankee the second he signed in Flushing. Unfortunately, he hit the IL in spring training, and was soon transferred to the 60-Day, where he remains to this day.

Then came Gary Sánchez, who's rebounded with six home runs in limited time this season ... all of which have come in a Padres uniform. The Mets received seven plate appearances and one single for their attempted troll job.

Prior to this week's Subway Series, the Mets added former Yankees slugger and 2020 AL home run leader Luke Voit. Twitter will tell you he hit a triple in his Triple-A Syracuse debut, but Twitter would be stretching the truth there just a little bit.

But the Mets had one final salvo for their neighbors on Tuesday evening, and this time, they plundered a player who hadn't yet starred for the big-league Yankees and may not be past his contribution window. Reliever Matt Minnick tore up Double-A last summer for the Somerset Patriots, posting eye-popping, best-in-the-system numbers. For whatever reason, the 27-year-old didn't throw a single pitch in the Yankees' system this season and was released last week.

Predictably, he's with the Mets now.

Yankees let WHIP leader Matt Minnick go, Mets steal him?

Minnick may not have made many top prospect lists, and scouts must've disliked something about his arsenal (and probably didn't love his advanced age). That said ... there was literally no one in the minors last year who both hit the proper innings threshold and posted a lower WHIP than Minnick. His 31.1-inning span last year with an 0.28 ERA helped bring down his WHIP to a minors-low 0.75.

And, now, he's headed to Double-A Binghamton to embody the Mets' latest attempt at a successful troll.

This one's different, though. Minnick's name won't make Yankee fans' skin crawl, but the unnecessary nature of his release (on the surface) gave the Mets a golden opportunity to do something the Yankees couldn't: find room for a record-setter.