Rojas Should Be An Obvious Add To Mets' 40-Man Roster

The New York Mets have jumped into the offseason with a bucketload of questions that need answers coming off a 74-88 disaster of a 2026 season.

Among the most prominent: 1) will they back a Brink's truck into free-agent pitcher Tarik Skubal's driveway and make him this year's game-changing (hopefully) offseason addition, 2) even with Skubal, who else will fill out the starting rotation, 3) is the aging Marcus Semien really still the answer at second base, 4) can Juan Soto still play left or is he destined to become a full-time DH, 5, 6, 7) and on and on and on....

One question, however, that should have been answered with a resounding "Yes!" months ago is this: "Will the Mets add shortstop prospect Jefferson Rojas to their 40-man roster or risk losing him in the Rule 5 Draft?"

Rojas was the centerpiece of the Mets' trade-deadline deal that sent pitcher Clay Holmes and outfielder Tyrone Taylor to the Chicago Cubs. Since signing with the Cubs for $1 million as a 16-year-old international free agent in January 2022, Rojas has done nothing but impress at every minor-league level he's played at, up to and including Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse after joining the Mets.

Because he singed so young, Rojas falls into the category of a player first signed at age 18 or younger who must be added to 40-man rosters within five seasons or they become eligible to be drafted by other organizations through the Rule 5 Draft process.

While the Mets will obviously not want that to happen, simply adding him to their 40-man roster before next Tuesday is not as easy as it sounds. That's because the Mets' 40-man list currently has the maximum 40 names on it, meaning at least one player will need to be traded or released to accommodate Rojas.

But that's not all the Mets have to worry about when it comes to 40-man machinations. According to MLB Pipeline - which has Rojas ranked as the Mets' No. 1 prospect and No. 68 overall - decisions have to made on whether or not to protect another six players who reside within MLB's list of New York's Top 30 prospects.

Two of them are in the Top 10, No. 6 third baseman Jacob Reimer and No. 10 right-handed pitcher Jack Wenninger.

The 22-year-old Reimer joined the Mets after being taken in the fourth round of the 2022 MLB Draft. In four seasons playing for five of New York's minor-league outfits, Reimer is a .262 hitter in 344 games with 74 doubles, 36 home runs, 186 RBIs and a .761 OPS.

Wenninger's is a name that some think could potentially see some rotation time in New York in 2027. Taken in the sixth round in 2023, he is 21-20 in four seasons with 68 games started and a cumulative 3.89 ERA. He was 5-8 in 22 starts at Syracuse with a 4.54 ERA and 123 strikeouts in 115 innings pitched.

Further down the rankings are outfielder Ryan Clifford (No. 14), right-handed pitcher Gary Gill Hill (No. 16, catcher/outfielder first baseman Chris Suero (No. 17) and right-handed pitcher Jose Chirinos (No. 26).

Clifford's is likely the most recognizable name as he was dealt to New York by the Houston Astros for pitcher Justin Verlander at the 2023 trade deadline. While he has had some bright moments - 29 HRs between Binghamton and Syracuse in 2025 - he hasn't really put together any consistently long stretches of excellence. His 2026 season at Syracuse was essentially a washout: .180 average and .640 OPS in 115 games with 174 strikeouts in 410 at-bats for a 42.4% strikeout rate.

Hill was also a recent trade acquisition, coming to the Mets at the 2026 deadline from the Tampa Bay Rays in the Freddy Peralta deal. Hill went 2-0 in five starts between Binghamton and Syracuse with a 3.45 ERA in 31.1 innings pitched. Suero was signed by the Mets as an 18-year-old in 2022. In five seasons, he is a .224 hitter with a .755 OPS, 18 HRs and 200 RBIs in 401 games. Finally, Chirinos signed in 2022 and has advanced as far as High-A Brooklyn where he was 1-7 with a 4.00 ERA in 15 starts in 2026.