The Mets recalled Zach Thornton from Triple-A on Friday morning, putting the left-hander back on the major league roster just hours before they opened a three-game series with the Phillies at Citi Field. The move came alongside the activation of Tyrone Taylor from the injured list and the optioning of MJ Melendez and Daniel Duarte to Triple-A.
Thornton’s return gives the Mets another pitching option after they had already seen him once this season. He made his big-league debut at Nationals Park on May 20 and allowed four earned runs in 4.1 innings, then went back to the minors with work still to do. Since then, the 24-year-old has logged a 4.25 ERA in 55.0 innings between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse, enough for the club to bring him back as the roster turns again.
That he was recalled after that debut line says more about need than comfort. The Mets were not asking for a finished product; they were asking for a left-handed arm they could plug into a game and cover innings if the night tilted the wrong way. Thornton, a fifth-round pick in the 2023 Draft and Amazin’ Avenue’s No. 14 preseason prospect, fits that role better than a pitcher still waiting for his first shot.
Taylor’s return also sharpened the picture for Friday. He had been out since May 26 with a right hip flexor strain and spent exactly one month on the injured list, but he came back with some lift: in four rehab games with Binghamton and Syracuse over the past week, he went 7-for-15 with two homers and six runs batted in. Before the injury, he was hitting.186/.210/.320, a line that had left little margin for error once he was healthy enough to play again.
The rest of the shuffle pushed Melendez and Duarte back to Triple-A, even though Duarte had only just been promoted on Thursday and spent one day with the team before being sent back down. Duarte made three appearances with the Mets this year and last pitched on June 14 against the Braves, when he allowed no runs, one hit and one walk while striking out three in five innings. Melendez, meanwhile, arrived hot on April 15 with a 1.024 OPS through his first 16 games, but he had hit.123 with a.495 OPS since that stretch cooled.
The timing matters because the Mets are entering the weekend with the Phillies in town and Zack Wheeler lined up to start the opener Friday night at 7:10 p.m. ET. With Carlos Mendoza gone and Andy Green serving as interim manager, every roster move now carries a little more weight. Thornton is back on the board, but the next answer the Mets need is whether he is there to steady the middle innings, open a spot start or simply survive the night if the series runs long.
