MILWAUKEE (AP) — Max Kranick didn’t pitch an inning for the New York Mets in the regular season and hasn’t appeared in a major league game since May 2022.
That didn’t stop the Mets from including the 27-year-old right-hander on their roster for their NL Wild Card Series with the Milwaukee Brewers.
“I’m definitely more excited than I’m showing,” Kranick said as he tried to act calm while speaking to reporters before the Mets’ 8-4 victory on Tuesday.
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said the club needed someone who could provide length out of the bullpen since Tylor Megill wouldn’t be available after throwing 5 2/3 innings in the opening game of a Monday doubleheader.
The Mets opted for Kranick, who went 2-2 with a 3.82 ERA in 45 minor league appearances. That included a 2-1 mark with a 3.57 ERA in 41 games with Triple-A Syracuse.
“He was dealing with injuries at the beginning of the year, and then we put him in the bullpen and the velo went up,” Mendoza said. “The reports we were getting is how well he was throwing the baseball.”
Kranick had flown to Atlanta on Monday, just in case he might be needed. He watched the Mets’ thrilling playoff-clinching 8-7 victory over the Braves on television while in the air.
“We were just going crazy,” Kranick said. “There were Braves fans behind us clapping when things weren’t going our way. But it was funny. Obviously super excited to see how it finished out.”
Kranick’s path to the playoffs had plenty of twists and turns.
He went 2-3 with a 6.28 ERA in nine games with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2021. He pitched five scoreless innings over two games with Pittsburgh the following year.
But he underwent Tommy John surgery in June 2022 and had been working in the minor leagues since his return.
“With Tommy John surgery, they say it takes two years for your velocity to come back,” Kranick said. “It was pretty much exactly that.”
Kranick also dealt with a hamstring injury early this season. The Mets designated him for assignment in early May.
Yet he remained with the organization and kept working. Kranick credited Syracuse pitching coach Grayson Crawford for assisting in his development.
Now the guy who grew up rooting for the Mets could be pitching for them with his fiancée and parents in the stands as they seek their first postseason series victory since their 2015 World Series appearance.
“You’ve got to give him credit,” Mendoza said. “That goes to show you that it’s baseball, and rosters continue to evolve throughout the year, and now here we are in the playoffs and we added a guy who hasn’t thrown a pitch for us the whole year. It’s a credit to player development and to him. I’m excited to have him on the roster today.”
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