New York Mets pitcher Grant Hartwig’s 2024 transaction log reads like the inspiration behind many a Simon & Garfunkel tune. He was optioned to Syracuse and recalled to Queens on four separate occasions.
Yet not even a jersey number change, from an almost impossibly high 96 to a more traditional 56, could earn Hartwig more than four games at the major league level last year.
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This season, Hartwig did not even get one call-up. Buried in the minor leagues with a 3.42 ERA for the Mets’ top farm team, the right-hander was granted his release on June 27. On Sunday, the other shoe dropped: the Hanshin Tigers announced they have signed Hartwig for the remainder of the 2025 NPB season.
Hartwig made 21 appearances with the Syracuse Mets this season, going 2-3 with two saves in two opportunities. He walked only 10 batters and struck out 33 in 23.2 innings.
Although batters hit .270 against him, inflating his WHIP to 1.56, it was shaping up to be Hartwig’s best season in the International League since his 2021 debut as a professional.
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The Mets, however, have gotten generally reliable performances this season from their relievers. Behind closer Edwin Diaz (4-0, 1.66, 19 saves), Hartwig was challenged to crack a pecking order that included right-handers Reed Garrett (2-4, 2.87 ERA), Jose Buttó (2-1, 2.47 ERA), Huascar Brazoban (5-2, 3.99 ERA) and Max Kranick (3-2, 3.65 ERA).
Considering he had lost his spot on the Mets’ 40-man roster after last season, Hartwig likely figured his best chance to extend his major league career — or at least his earning power — included a detour through Japan.
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Hartwig made his major league debut in 2023 and appeared in 28 games, all in relief. Across the last two seasons, he has a 5–2 record, 5.14 ERA, and 1.405 WHIP across 42 innings with 34 strikeouts to 19 walks in MLB.
Hartwig’s 2023 campaign showcased promise: a 4.84 ERA, along with 30 strikeouts in 35.1 innings and a tidy 2.00 K/BB ratio — including a run of four straight wins and nearly a dozen strikeouts per nine innings.
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But his tough 2024 season included just 6.2 innings for the Mets and a trip to the injured list at Syracuse, leaving those early flashes unfulfilled.
Now Hartwig will head overseas to resuscitate his career, hopefully following in the recent footsteps of others who have done so in Japan such as Miles Mikolas and Colby Lewis.
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