Veteran reliever elects free agency ahead of playoff eligibility deadline

Mets left-hander Adam Kolarek rejected an outright assignment to Triple-A Syracuse after clearing waivers and elected free agency, per the transaction log at MiLB.com.

Kolarek, 34, now stands as an interesting, last-minute depth addition for playoff hopefuls seeking to stockpile bullpen arms in advance of Friday’s postseason eligibility deadline. 

The sidearm southpaw has appeared in parts of seven big league seasons, logging a combined 3.62 ERA with a well below-average 15.9% strikeout rate but strong command (6.8% walk rate) and a mammoth 63.9% ground-ball rate. He’s tossed six shutout innings with a 7-to-1 K/BB ratio between the Dodgers and Mets in 2023, plus another 35 1/3 innings of 2.55 ERA ball in Triple-A (albeit with an uncharacteristic 13.5% walk rate in that time).

Kolarek struggled with the A’s in 2021-22 (5.74 ERA in 26 2/3 innings) but has had success at every other stop in his big league career, including with the Rays, Dodgers (two stints) and Mets. He’s not a hard thrower, but he’s held opponents to an ugly 87.2 mph exit velocity in his career and allowed less than a third of the batted balls against him at 95 mph or more — both strong marks. He’ll presumably draw some interest on a minor league deal from a playoff hopeful, and with rosters set to expand to 28 players on Friday, a return path to the big leagues could be all the more realistic.