The Mets activated Tomas Nido , who had been on the disabled list with dry eye syndrome since May 10, on Thursday afternoon. To open up a roster spot for Nido, catcher Gary Sánchez was designated for assignment.
By DFA-ing Sanchez, the veteran receiver is immediately removed from the 40-man roster and the Mets now have seven days to trade him or place him on waivers.
With Nido’s return, the Mets had a bit of a logjam at receiver with Francisco Álvarez and Sánchez already on the active roster. It was thought that perhaps Mark Vientos could be sent in to keep Sanchez as a DH option, but instead, it’s the veteran Sanchez who is the outsider.
“Our depth is good at that position,” Buck Showalter said .
Showalter declined to explain exactly how the receiving split between Nido and Álvarez would work now that Nido is back in the mix, and Omar Narváez is probably a couple of weeks away from returning himself.
Sanchez, who signed with the Mets to a minor league deal and made his club debut May 21, is hitting .167 with one RBI and three strikeouts in six at-bats this season.