Ervin Santana Signs Minor League Contract with Mets, Will Report to High-A

The New York Mets signed veteran pitcher Ervin Santana to a minor-league contract on Friday. 

According to the team, Santana will report to the High-A St. Lucie Mets of the Florida State League. 

Santana, 36, made three starts for the Chicago White Sox this season, going 0-2 with a 9.45 ERA, 1.88 WHIP and five strikeouts in 13.1 innings. He was designated for assignment in late April.

"Frankly, we weren't quite getting what we were hoping for out of that spot in terms of consistency and we decided to make a change," general manager Rick Hahn said at the time, per the Associated Press (h/t USA Today). "We didn't feel like it was working out, and we decided to go a different direction in the interest of the long term."

He made just five appearances in the 2018 season for the Minnesota Twins after having surgery on a tendon in his right middle finger. The Twins declined his $14 million option in November. 

For his career, Santana is 149-127 with a 4.09 ERA in 15 seasons, pitching for the Los Angeles Angels, Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Braves, Twins and White Sox. He was an All-Star in 2008 for the Angels and in 2017 with the Twins.

For the struggling Mets, he could potentially push for the fifth spot in the rotation behind Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, Zack Wheeler and Steven Matz. Jason Vargas holds the fifth spot, with Wilmer Font being used as the fill-in starter when needed. Santana could challenge for either role if he can get back to a level at least partially resembling his 2017 form.