WFAN is confirming that the Mets and Rick Ankiel have come to an agreement.
Ankiel is expected to be in uniform on Monday night for the Mets and Andrew Brown already has been told he is being dispatched to Triple-A Las Vegas according to Adam Rubin.
Ankiel, 33, was released by the Astros last week after hitting .194 with a .231 OBP in 25 games for the Astros. He also hit five home runs and drove in 11, but had 35 strikeouts and three walks in 65 plate appearances.
Thoughts from Matt Balasis
You may remember Ankiel from Game 2 of the NLCS against the New York Mets, Ankiel was removed in the first inning after throwing 20 pitches, five of which went to the backstop. Ankiel appeared again in the seventh inning of Game 5 facing four hitters, walking two, and throwing two more wild pitches. The Cardinals lost the series four games to one to the Mets.
Since then Ankiel has more or less reinvented himself as an outfielder with his best season probably coming in 2009 when he hit .264 with 25 home runs and 71 rbi. Since then he’s been primarily a 4th outfielder used primarily for pop off the bench. Ankiel is of course known for his rifle arm and has often been used late inning defensive replacement in right field with a runner on first.
I’ve always thought it a shame that this guy never figured out how to get back to pitching off a mound. Perhaps letting him pitch from center field might have helped him since his control from there appears to be deadly accurate.
Ankiel is also remembered for having purchased a 12 month supply of HGH with perccriptions signed by Florida physician William Gogan, who provided them through a Palm Beach Gardens clinic called The Health and Rejuvenation Center as reported by the Daily News in 2004. Ankiel was never suspended as HGH wasn’t banned by MLB until 2005.
Ankiel was hitting .194 but had five home runs in 25 games before the Astros released him. Ankiel, 33, could provide some interesting options for a Met team in dire need of outfield help.
The Mets with less than stellar performances from Lucas Duda, Jordany Valdespin, Malon Byrd, Colin Cowgil and Mike Baxter, the Mets could be a fit for the veteran Ankiel. The Met offense has been struggling mightily of late with a 691 OPS (24th best in baseball. The Mets scored just 14 runs on their recent six-game homestand. It doesn’t get much worse than that.
