The Mets announced Wednesday that they’ve designated right-hander Matt Festa for assignment. His spot on the active roster will go to right-hander Christian Scott, who has been recalled from Triple-A Syracuse to start today’s game.
Festa, 31, signed a minor league deal with the Mets on May 20 and posted outstanding Triple-A numbers prior to being selected to the MLB roster recently: 15 1/3 innings, 1.76 ERA, 32.2% strikeout rate, 5.1% walk rate. He only got into one game at the big league level with the Mets, however, and the results were nightmarish. In one inning, he was roughed up for five runs (four earned) on four hits and a walk. That lone frame was enough to inflate his career ERA from 4.32 (in 93 2/3 innings) to 4.66.
A former seventh-round pick, Festa has now pitched in parts of five big league seasons, the other four coming as a member of the Mariners. The 6’1″, 195-pound right-hander has seen his career slowed by injuries, most notably including 2020 Tommy John surgery. That wiped out his entire 2020 campaign and the bulk of his 2021 season as well.
Festa saw big league time in the two years prior to that surgery (2018-19) and the two years following the completion of his rehab (2022-23). In addition to the aforementioned 4.66 ERA in the majors, he’s turned in a sharp 25.1% strikeout rate to go along with plus swinging-strike rates. His 10.9% walk rate is also a couple percentage points worse than the league average, however, and his 92.6 mph average fastball velocity is rather pedestrian.
Beyond his strong showing with the Mets’ Triple-A club, Festa pitched decently with the Padres’ top affiliate in El Paso after signing a minor league deal in the offseason. He logged 16 innings and yielded eight runs, though a .360 average on balls in play didn’t do him any favors in that small sample. He fanned 21.6% of his opponents during that brief stay in the Padres organization and turned in a 9.5% walk rate.
In parts of five Triple-A seasons, Festa has a 2.10 ERA, a 27.7% strikeout rate and a 9% walk rate. He’ll be traded or placed on outright waivers within the next five days now that he’s been designated for assignment (and waivers themselves would take another 48 hours). Any team that acquires or claims Festa would need to put him right on the major league roster, as he’s out of minor league options. He’s been outrighted once in the past (2020), so Festa would have the right to reject a Triple-A assignment if he goes unclaimed on waivers.
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