Hansel Robles’ wild ride as a Met is over.
The much maligned reliever was designated for assignment Friday as part of a roster squeeze and a growing frustration over his lack of improvement in his fourth season with the team.
“For me, it was, you kept on seeing the same thing,” manager Mickey Callaway said before the Mets’ 5-2 loss to the Dodgers. “The adjustments that he probably needed to make to be that consistent guy that was going to be able to get consistent outs was looking more and more difficult. It looked like it wasn’t going to happen for us. He went out there, he attacked, probably did the best he could and the results just weren’t coming.”
Robles had posted a 5.03 ERA and allowed seven home runs over 19 ²/₃ innings this season before the Mets optioned him to Triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday.
But by calling up reliever Drew Smith and outfielder Kevin Kaczmarski from Triple-A before their weekend series against the Dodgers at Citi Field, the Mets needed to open up two spots on the 40-man roster. They got one by transferring reliever AJ Ramos (torn labrum) to the 60-day disabled list, and had other options to create the second, but decided to make Robles the odd man out.
“Hansel’s been with us quite a while. We’ve seen him pitch well, we’ve seen him pitch less well,” general manager Sandy Alderson said. “We’ve got a number of other young relievers, some of whom we acquired last year at the trade deadline, we want to take a look at.”
The Mets now have seven days to trade, release or outright Robles to the minors if he passes through waivers.
Across four seasons with the Mets, the 27-year-old Robles had a 4.07 ERA. That number was 3.55 through his first two seasons, but only rose higher in the second half of his tenure in Queens.
Robles showed flashes of a live arm, striking out 229 batters over 208 innings, but was also tagged for 32 home runs. That average of 1.4 home runs per nine innings is the second-worst in Mets history (minimum 200 innings) behind Pedro Astacio’s 1.6, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
The 24-year-old Smith, who was acquired from the Rays for Lucas Duda last summer, recorded a 2.88 ERA, 34 strikeouts and 13 walks over 34 ¹/₃ innings this season between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Las Vegas.
“We just felt it was time to take a look at a couple of additional people,” Alderson said. “We’re excited to see what Drew Smith can do for us.”