NEW YORK – The Minnesota Twins acquired left-handed reliever A.J. Minter from the New York Mets for minor league infielders Bruin Agbayani and Billy Amick on Friday, reinforcing a thin bullpen ahead of the trade deadline.
The 19-year-old Agbayani, the son of former Mets fan favorite Benny Agbayani, is a middle infielder who hit .268 in 10 games for Fort Myers in low Class A this season. The sixth-round 2025 draft pick, a native of Hawaii, has been limited by injuries.
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“It means a lot," Benny Agbayani said on a conference call Friday afternoon. “He wanted to get drafted by the Mets when he was first coming out of high school. That's all he knew. That's all Dad talked about. It's a great opportunity for him and I'm just going to support him as much as I can.”
The Alomars (father Sandy Sr. and sons Roberto and Sandy Jr.) and Wilsons (father Mookie and stepson Preston) are the only father-son combos to play for the Mets.
“It’s great to have him wearing a Mets jersey and continuing the legacy,” Benny Agbayani said.
The 23-year-old Amick batted .217 with 23 homers in 86 games for Double-A Wichita this season, playing first and third base. He was a second-round draft pick in 2024.
Minter had a 2.35 ERA in 23 innings with 20 strikeouts and only two walks. He didn't make his season debut until May 26, going more than a year between major league appearances. His 2025 season ended after 13 appearances when he injured his left lat muscle in his back and needed surgery.
Minter signed a two-year, $22 million contract with the Mets in 2025. His 2024 season with the Atlanta Braves also was cut short by a torn labrum in his left hip, but when he's been healthy he's been one of baseball's most effective late-game lefties. The 33-year-old, who was a second-round 2015 draft pick by the Braves, has a 3.18 ERA with 456 strikeouts in 382 2/3 innings over 420 career appearances.
“He is playoff tested. He is proven,” Twins manager Derek Shelton said. “When you do the background on the human being, you find really good stuff.”
Minter likely will be the first of multiple Mets players moved before the trade deadline on Monday. They have the second-worst record in the National League.
The Mets scratched Friday's scheduled starter, Freddy Peralta, because interim manager Andy Green said trade talks involving the right-hander have intensified. Kodai Senga started against the Miami Marlins instead.
“It just became a prudent path for us,” Green said. “There’s enough going on right now.”
The Mets also placed left-hander Cionel Pérez on the injured list with a left forearm strain and recalled pitchers Xzavion Curry and Jonathan Pintaro from Triple-A Syracuse.
The Twins, who started a nine-game trip Friday at Seattle, have a 4.92 relief ERA that ranks fifth-worst in the major leagues. They lead the American League in runs and entered Friday one game out of a wild-card spot.
"We said that we were going to go out, we were going to buy, we were going to be aggressive in that market," Shelton said. “I think (Twins general manager Jeremy Zoll) has kind of done that at the front end of it and there’s still three days left.”
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB