We are well into the 2025 season, as April is about to wrap up. We’ve got a decent look at how some of the New York Mets’ players they cut from the spring training roster are fairing, and in this case, they definitely made the right decision. Sean Reid-Foley was outrighted off the team’s 40-man roster in early March, and his performance in the minor leagues this year shows why.
However, a glance at his numbers from 2025 would have some questioning the Mets’ decision. He had a 1.66 ERA, 2.80 FIP, and 1.25 WHIP in 21.2 innings pitched in 2024. Reid-Foley didn’t allow a single home run, had an impressive 60.8% ground ball percentage, and was only one of two pitchers with at least 20 IP out of the pen and a barrel rate of zero percent. He also struck out 27.8% of the opponents he faced. Sure, he had a mediocre 15.6% BB%, but his bottom line was still strong.
Reid-Foley has only tossed 7.1 innings for Syracuse so far this season but has already allowed five earned runs and ten hits. At least he’s struck out fifteen batters with a 37.2% whiff rate, but has also dished out ten walks. Opponents have had no trouble squaring up Reid-Foley. He’s given up two home runs with a barrel rate clocking in at 22.2%.
The Mets made the right decision to cut Sean Reid-Foley in spring training.
Reid-Foley struggling shouldn’t be all that surprising. His 3.70 xFIP and 3.95 SIERA weren’t bad but suggested that he wasn’t going to continue to post an elite ERA. His .255 batting average on balls in play was far higher than that of his .298 mark heading into 2024. He would have gotten punished way more often if his BABIP was anywhere close to his career norm, as his walk rate was very high. Despite an impressive strikeout and whiff percentage in 2024, Reid-Foley does not have overpowering stuff. Stuff+ pinned his offerings as well below average at just 92. On top of that, the right-hander had a 4.58 ERA, 4.68 FIP, and 1.55 WHIP in his first 110 innings in the Major Leagues.
Ultimately, the Mets look like they’ve made the right decision regarding Sean-Reid Foley. They could have taken the bet that the right-hander’s strong 21.2 innings in 2024 were a turning point in his career, but outrighting him off the roster has opened the door for some relievers who have done very well to start 2025, like Max Kranick, who has done exceptionally well to open 2025.