The Mets announced Thursday that they’ve designated outfielder Travis Jankowski for assignment. His spot on the active roster goes to Luisangel Acuña, who has been recalled from Triple-A Syracuse. The team added that right-handed reliever Austin Warren is up from Syracuse to serve as the 27th man for today’s doubleheader against the Orioles.
Jankowski has played with the Mets, Rays and White Sox this year, although his role in Queens was quite limited. New York signed him to a minor league deal on June 10 and selected him to the big league roster on June 23, but he’s only appeared in five games and taken one plate appearance since that time. He’s up to 50 plate appearances on the season between those three teams and has produced a .244/.286/.289 batting line in that time.
The veteran Jankowski has played for eight teams and now picked up more than eight years of major league service time since making his debut with the 2015 Padres. He’s never been an outfield regular, topping out at 387 plate appearances in a single season, but has carved out a lengthy career as a reserve outfielder and pinch-running/defensive specialist. Jankowski is 34 but still sits in the 95th percentile of big leaguers in terms of average sprint speed, per Statcast. He can play all three outfield positions and carries a career .236/.318/.305 batting line in 1759 plate appearances.
The Mets can trade Jankowski or place him on waivers at any point in the next five days. Waivers would require an additional 48 hours to process. If he goes unclaimed, Jankowski will have the right to reject an outright assignment to the minor leagues in favor of free agency, if he wishes to do so.
Acuña returns to the Mets after being optioned when Jankowski was originally selected, on June 23. He played in a dozen Triple-A contests and tallied 53 plate appearances, batting .289/.346/.378 in that short time. Acuña played both middle infield spots but also started four games in center field — including his past two games — during this brief Syracuse reset. He’s only played center in the majors once this year, but his recent work on the grass in Triple-A could make him a more frequent outfield contributor in his return to the big league roster.