The New York Mets’ 40-man roster essentially stands at 43 players at the moment. Once the World Series ends the Mets will have five days to add any players on the 60-day injured list to the 40-man roster and decide who to remove. The Mets have three players that will have to be added: Jorge Polanco, Tylor Megill, and Reed Garrett. All three are expected to be added.
The 40-man roster will also evolve as the offseason goes on and the Mets add free agents, make trades or claim players off waivers. Doing so requires removing someone from the 40-man roster.
So where does the 40-man roster stand, who are locks, and who may not survive the full offseason?
Francisco Lindor by Roberto Carlo
Opening Day Locks (22)
This is the easiest category. The Mets have 22 players that are locks to survive the full offseason if Bo Bichette opts in. Some of these players could end up traded, but assuming they are not those players are:
- Juan Soto
- Francisco Lindor
- Bo Bichette
- Carson Benge
- A.J. Ewing
- Brett Baty
- Francisco Alvarez
- Luis Torrens
- Jared Young
- Jorge Polanco
- Nolan McLean
- Christian Scott
- Zac Thornton
- Sean Manaea
- Devin Williams
- Kodai Senga
- Dedniel Núñez
- Nate Lavender
- Tobias Myers
- Jonah Tong
- Tylor Megill
- Reed Garrett
Rule 5 Adds (5)
The Mets have 36 players that are Rule 5 eligible this offseason. Obviously, they are not going to add all of them to the 40-man roster. Only players that are both expected to be claimed and the Mets are afraid to lose will be protected from the Rule 5 Draft. Anyone claimed must spend the entire season on said team’s major league roster or be returned to the Mets. That means players at the lower minor levels like Jose Chirinos or Ernesto Mercedes will not be protected. Players like Ryan Clifford, who struggled heavily in 2026, are unlikely to be claimed which means they will likely not be protected. And players who have not been claimed in the past like Kevin Parada are likely not to be claimed this year.
The players the Mets traded for at the most recent deadline likely will be protected as the Mets acquired those prospects knowing they would be Rule 5 eligible.
This means the five players the Mets are likely to protect from the Rule 5 Draft are:
Jack Wenninger may be the biggest question mark add after his up-and-down 2026 and his major concerns about his viability as a starter. But he could very likely be claimed as a reliever, a role he could fill on the Mets. Rojas and Reimer would likely be claimed and both should be expected to play a role for the 2027 Mets. Gill Hill and Franklin were acquired at the deadline by the Mets and pitched well.
One thing of note is that if a team adds someone to protect them from draft and later removes them, they go on waivers, can be claimed, and will not be bound by the roster requirement of the Rule Five Draft. So if any of these players are protected they will likely be guaranteed to survive the offseason.
Note, this brings the overall total to 27.
Players With Options Likely to Survive First Purge (11)
Players with options tend to survive the initial roster cuts in the offseason. Roster flexibility is key to a successful season so anyone with an option likely survives the first round of cuts at the least. This is in order from most likely to last the offseason to least likely.
- Nick Morabito
- Justin Hagenman
- Jonathan Pintaro
- Jefry Yan
- Jack Weisenburger
- Dylan Ross
- Hayden Senger
- Eric Wagaman
- Philip Abner
- Cameron Weston
- Christian Cairo
Nick Morabito likely showed enough to keep his 40-man spot and be depth for the 2027 season. The Mets protected Justin Hagenman’s option which likely means they want him as depth for 2027. Jonathan Pintaro, Jefry Yan and Jack Weisenburger got significant run post the trade deadline which shows the Mets have at least some level of investment in them. Dylan Ross may be too high here but he was protected in the past and kept on the roster all year. Hayden Senger likely stays until the Mets find a better third catcher. Eric Wagaman is a decent depth piece the Mets claimed midseason. Philip Abner, Cameron Weston, and Christian Cairo were all claimed off waivers in September to fill the back of the Mets 40-man roster.
It is possible some of these do not make the roster crunch depending on who from the following lists make the cut.
The first five are very likely to make the cut but all eleven would bring the Mets 40-man roster to 38.
Marcus Semien
There is always a chance the Mets cut bait with Marcus Semien but he likely at least gets spring training to show that he deserves to stay on the roster, if even in a part-time role. President of baseball operations David Stearns would not commit to Semien keeping his starting role and seemed to allude that he has lost that role, but that does not mean he could not get some run either off the bench or in a part time role. For consistency in format Semien is the 39th player here.
- Marcus Semien
Most Likely Candidates for the Final 40-Man Spot(s)
This is where roster crunch comes in the most. There are typically more players a team wants on their 40-man roster than there are roster spots. The most likely candidates that do not fit the above sections are:
Daniel Duarte and Austin Warren had strong seasons which could secure their jobs. The Mets traded for Chayce McDermott, but it was also Ben Rortvedt they sent to get him so that may not mean much. Both he and Cionel Pérez have intriguing stuff the Mets may want to work with. Pérez is also a lefty which could help his case.
All four would bring the roster over 40 players so either some of these players will not make the cut, some of the rule five eligible players won’t be protected, or some of the players with options will not make the cut.
Main Non-Tender Candidates
It is possible Mark Vientos and Ronny Mauricio do make the cut, especially if the Mets think they can trade them. But doing so would mean the Mets lose someone else. Neither have options left and it is hard to see either making the Opening Day roster, especially Vientos.
- Mark Vientos
- Ronny Mauricio
- Christopher Morel
- Cristian Pache
- Robert Stock
Juan Soto by Roberto Carlo
Prediction
The following players are likely to survive the offseason on the 40-man roster.
Outfielders:
- Juan Soto*
- Carson Benge
- A.J. Ewing
- Nick Morabito
Infielders:
- Francisco Lindor*
- Bo Bichette*
- Brett Baty
- Jared Young
- Jorge Polanco*
- Jefferson Rojas
- Jacob Reimer
- Eric Wagaman
- Marcus Semien
Catchers:
- Francisco Alvarez
- Luis Torrens*
Starting Pitchers:
- Nolan McLean
- Christian Scott
- Zac Thornton
- Sean Manaea*
- Jonah Tong
- Tylor Megill*
- Jack Wenninger
- Gary Gill Hill
- Justin Hagenman
- Jack Weisenburger
Relief Pitchers:
- Devin Williams*
- Kodai Senga*
- Dedniel Núñez
- Nate Lavender
- Tobias Myers*
- Reed Garrett*
- Zach Franklin
- Jonathan Pintaro
- Jefry Yan
- One of Daniel Duarte* or Austin Warren*
Note, “*” denotes they cannot be optioned.
This leaves the Mets 40-man roster at 35 leaving them five open spots to add players without trading away major league players listed above.
Notable removals:
- The three waiver claims, Philip Abner, Cameron Weston, and Christian Cairo will likely be among the first players with options cut and could make it though waivers for the Mets.
- Hayden Senger has passed through waivers before and the Mets could go with a third catcher not on the 40-man roster if needed.
- Dylan Ross could be viewed as likely to pass through waivers after his struggles in 2026.
- One of Duarte or Warren is likely a trade candidate as there are only eight total bullpen spots.
- Cionel Pérez and Chayce McDermott do not have options left which makes them difficult to see making it through the offseason.
