New York Mets star reliever A.J. Minter eyeing this return date

Mets' A.J. Minter is hoping to be ready by Opening Day after missing nearly the final two months of last season due to hip surgery.

Kerry Kauffman | Mar 3, 2025

Feb 15, 2025; Port St. Lucie, FL, USA; New York Mets pitcher A.J. Minter (33) pitches during a spring training workout at Clover Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

In this story:

New York Mets

New York Mets new high-leverage reliever A.J. Minter is encouraged with his progression from left hip surgery last August and is ahead of schedule in his quest to be ready for Opening Day.

On Sunday, Minter made a substantial step in the right direction after facing live batters for the first time in nearly seven months. He knows he "needs to be smart about this," in terms of not rushing back just to return by March 27 when the regular season begins.

The latest on A.J. Minter:https://t.co/mrq7FYuvyB
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) March 2, 2025

As camp began for the Mets nearly three weeks ago, Minter was a question mark for the season opener, which is now less than four weeks away. The biggest issue was how Minter's body would react after getting on a mound again.

Minter had his most extensive workout on Sunday, pitching to Pete Alonso, Starling Marte, Drew Gilbert, and Joey Meneses in a live bullpen session. Although the proportion of hard-hit balls to swings and misses was not to Minter's liking, the results weren't as important as feeling healthy after throwing 20-25 pitches of live BP. His final pitch sawed off Marte, cracking the outfielder’s bat.

“Physically, it felt good,” Minter told reporters, including MLB.com's Anthony DiComo. “That’s all I can really ask for.”

📸 A.J. Minter (hip) threw live BP for the first time today since surgery. Some loud contact from Drew Gilbert, Joey Meneses and Pete Alonso, but also some swing-and-miss. Minter cracked Starling Marte's bat on his final pitch, eliciting a strong reaction. pic.twitter.com/mIVQNDstHj
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) March 2, 2025

There is still plenty of time to get Minter into Grapefruit League games over the next few weeks. Therefore, expect him to throw a few more live batting practice sessions before the start of the regular season.

The health of Minter and Dedniel Nunez is critical over the next few weeks as the Mets need to make final decisions in the bullpen. Minter went 5-4 with an ERA of 2.61 in 39 games with the Atlanta Braves last season. He has a career record of 24-29 with an ERA of 3.24 in 384 games over eight seasons.

Recommended Articles