Mets Option Catcher Hayden Senger to Triple-A Syracuse, Finalizing Roster
Hayden Senger, who worked at Whole Foods last offseason, was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse as the Mets trimmed to 38 players in big-league camp.
The Mets optioned catcher Hayden Senger to Triple-A Syracuse on Saturday, trimming their big-league camp to 38 players as the club pushes toward its Opening Day roster. Francisco Álvarez and Luis Torrens will serve as New York's major-league catching tandem to start the 2026 season, with Senger heading back to Syracuse to begin the year.
The move carried an added layer of reassurance for Mets fans: Álvarez had been pulled from Thursday night's game with back tightness, but he was back in the lineup Saturday for New York's home spring game against the Houston Astros at Clover Park in Port St. Lucie. Optioning Senger rather than scrambling for catching depth signals the organization is not concerned about Álvarez's status.
Senger spent much of 2025 filling exactly that kind of backup role, appearing in 33 games while Álvarez dealt with injuries and a stretch in Triple-A working on his swing. In 78 plate appearances, Senger posted a .181/.221/.194 slash line. RotoWire and FantasyPros credit him with one double and four RBI over that span; other outlets reported four home runs during the same sample, a discrepancy worth noting given that four home runs would be mathematically difficult to reconcile with a .194 slugging percentage.
The 2025 season was a revolving door for Senger at the roster level. He made his MLB debut against the Astros as a late-game substitute, striking out in his only plate appearance. He recorded his first major-league hit, a double, on April 2 against the Miami Marlins. He was optioned to Syracuse on April 24 after Jeff McNeil and Álvarez were activated from the injured list, recalled June 10 when Álvarez went on the paternity list, sent back down June 12 without starting either game, recalled again June 22 when Álvarez was assigned to Triple-A, and optioned a final time on July 21 in Álvarez's favor.
The spring camp catching roster behind Álvarez and Torrens included veterans Austin Barnes and Ben Rortvedt alongside prospects Kevin Parada, Jose Aular, and Chris Suero. With that much depth available, Senger's assignment was not a surprise.
What made Senger a minor storyline heading into camp was his offseason: he worked at Whole Foods, a detail that drew attention last winter and added a working-man quality to his profile as a roster-bubble backstop. He was a 24th-round pick, 710th overall, in the 2018 draft, and spent eight minor-league seasons grinding through Kingsport, Brooklyn, Columbia, Binghamton, and Syracuse before earning a big-league debut. In 55 appearances across three levels in 2024, he hit .234/.302/.363 with three home runs and 29 RBI. In 2022, his first extended look at Triple-A, he slashed .240/.309/.358 in 83 appearances between Binghamton and Syracuse.
He will be back at Syracuse to start 2026, within recall distance if Álvarez's back becomes a concern or Torrens needs a spell.
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