Mets decide they’ll go without a QB

With bated breath, the Mets released part of their 60-man player pool Sunday night and it consisted of young minor-league prospects and familiar veterans alike.

The Mets included 45 players out of a potential 60 in their pool. Teams can add players, as necessary, but players cannot be added back in once they are removed from the list.

Players who do not make the Opening Day roster but are included in the player pool will either be part of a three-man taxi squad that will travel with the team in case of injuries or emergencies, or they will continue working out at MCU Park in Brooklyn, which is the

Mets’ alternate training site required this year by MLB.

Shortstop An- dres Gimenez, left-hander David Peterson and outfielder Johneshwy Fargas (who hit for the cycle in a 2020 exhibition game) are some of the notable minor-league players included in the team’s pool. Righthander Drew Smith, who recorded a 3.54 ERA across 28 innings pitched in 2018 before undergoing Tommy John surgery the following year, is also on the roster.

Former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow and top prospects Ronny Mauricio, Matthew Allan and Brett Baty did not make the list.

Gimenez is listed by MLB Pipeline as the Mets’ No. 3 overall prospect. The 21-year-old, who is valued for his defensive savvy in the hole, is now in line to make his major-league debut in 2020. Gimenez appeared stronger and hit for power at Mets camp in February, and Mets manager Luis Rojas was pleased with his progress. The Mets signed him for $1.2 million out of Venezuela in 2015.

Peterson, 24, is expected to make the Mets’ Opening Day roster – which will consist of a maximum of 30 players this year. Rojas and GM Brodie Van Wagenen implied in March that the southpaw could be one of the team’s starters. The Mets will need all the help they can get in the rotation without Noah Syndergaard, who is out for the season following Tommy John surgery and an expected year of rehab.

Mending Mets Yoenis Cespedes (ankle, heels) and Jed Lowrie (knee) are both included in the team’s player pool for the 2020 season.

Cespedes has not appeared in a big-league game since July 2018, but he participated in batting practice before spring training was shut down due to the coronavirus in March. It is expected that the extra threeplus months of recovery should get Cespedes ready for a designated hitter role, at minimum. The universal DH will be implemented for the 2020 season. Lowrie missed the majority of the 2019 season with several lower-body issues. He finally made his Mets debut in September and went hitless with four strikeouts and one walk across seven at-bats. Lowrie showed up to Mets camp in February sporting a big black brace that stretched from his left ankle to mid-thigh to ease the pain in his knee. He participated in baseball activities but did not appear in an exhibition game before operations were suspended.

Veteran players — who are not currently on the 40man roster but made the player pool — include first baseman Matt Adams, infielder Eduardo Nunez, catcher Rene Rivera and outfielder Jarrett Parker.

All 45 players included in the current pool have been invited to summer camp, which begins this week. Mets players have been asked to arrive at Citi Field by Wednesday for necessary COVID-19 testing and protocols, with their first fullsquad workout scheduled for Friday. The regular-season schedule has not yet been announced by MLB. Opening Day will be around July 24.