Move Jon Niese from the bullpen into the rotation.
Mets fans aren’t going to be excited to see Jon Niese starting, let alone on the team at all. Niese may have burned a few bridges after he was traded in the offseason, but still has value.
He pitched to an abysmal 4.91 ERA in Pittsburgh during the first half. However, that’s not indicative of his 4.00 lifetime ERA. He knows Travis d’Arnaud behind the plate and is familiar with Citi Field and pitching coach Dan Warthen. It may not be a sexy pick, but the veteran Niese might fare better than Verrett.
Starting Niese until Wheeler returns would allow Verrett to transition back into the bullpen where he’s had more success (3.18 ERA). Moving Niese to the ‘pen in September or keeping a six man rotation would give the Mets a nice problem to solve.
