The New York Mets signed left-handed pitcher Brandon Waddell to a minor-league contract for the 2025 season.
The 30-year-old southpaw born in Houston, Texas, was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the fifth round of the 2015 MLB Draft out of the University of Virginia. He would spend five years in the Pirates organization before making his debut with them in 2020. He appeared in just two games that year, posting a 2.70 ERA and picking up two strikeouts.
After the 2020 season, he was claimed off waivers by the Minnesota Twins. He would open the 2021 season in the Twins bullpen, but after struggling in four games, he was claimed by the Baltimore Orioles in May. Only throwing a scoreless inning for the Orioles, he was claimed by the St. Louis Cardinals a month later, where he pitched in four games, posting a 4.15 ERA, striking out six batters in four and a third innings.
He would begin the 2022 season pitching with the Cardinals Triple-A affiliate, pitching in their bullpen. He departed midway through the 2022 year to pursue an opportunity in the KBO with the Doosan Bears. He made 11 starts in 2022 with the Bears, going 5-3, a 3.60 ERA, striking out 40 in 65 innings of work.
After a tremendous start in 2023 with Doosan, throwing to an 11-3 record with a 2.49 ERA, Waddell signed with the Rakuten Monkeys in the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL). He would go 5-5 in 12 starts, posting a 3.30 ERA, pitching in 71 innings, and striking out 60 batters. He would head back to Doosan for the 2024 season.
With Doosan in 2024, Waddell went 7-4, posting a 3.12 ERA in 14 starts, striking out 75 batters in an even 75 innings pitched, only walking 11 batters. It will be intriguing to see what the Mets plans are for Waddell, as he could look to provide some valuable innings in Spring Training in hopes of cracking a potential rotation opportunity.
