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ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - MAY 02: Austin Slater #40 of the New York Mets celebrates his run from a Bo Bichette #19 single, to tie the Los Angeles Angels 1-1, during the third inning at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on May 02, 2026 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

The New York Mets are starting to turn their season around after a disastrous start to the year. They beat the Washington Nationals 16-7 on Monday, May 18, and are now 10-5 in the month of May.

Mets Release Austin Slater

The Mets designated OF Austin Slater for assignment on Tuesday, May 19, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post. The 10-year MLB veteran replaced OF Tommy Pham less than a month ago as the outfield carousel continues for the Mets.

Slater started his 2026 season with the Miami Marlins before joining the Mets. The 33-year-old struggled in a small sample size. He appeared in 9 games and tallied 5 hits in 20 at-bats for the team. But now that Carson Benge and A.J Ewing are serving as everyday outfielders, it makes sense for New York to part ways with Slater.

There is no word yet on what the corresponding move for Slater will be. But Tyrone Taylor is now the Mets’ bench outfielder. Vidal Brujan and Brett Baty are both bench options, even though they bring limited outfield experience.

GettySAN DIEGO, CA – OCTOBER 5: Austin Slater #13 of the San Francisco Giants points skyward after hitting a solo home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres October 5, 2022 at Petco Park in San Diego, California. (Photo by Denis Poroy/Getty Images)

Austin Slater’s MLB Career

The outfielder spent the first 8 seasons of his MLB career with the San Francisco Giants, during which he posted some of his most productive seasons.

He hit a career-high 12 home runs and added 32 RBIs to the 2021 Giants squad that set a franchise record regular-season win total (107). He followed that up with his highest WAR season (1.4) in 2022, where he posted a .264 batting average with 7 home runs and 34 RBIs.

San Francisco traded the veteran outfielder to the Cincinnati Reds in 2024. At the time, Slater was the longest tenured Giant on the current roster.

Since being traded, the veteran has bounced around the MLB. He only played in 8 games for the Reds before joining the Baltimore Orioles in 2024. He then appeared in 65 games combined with the Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees in 2025. Earlier this season, he signed a minor league deal with the Detroit Tigers before the Miami Marlins offered him a major league contract.

Throughout his career, Slater has been known as a productive platoon option. He is a right-handed hitter who has proven success against left-handed pitching. It will be interesting to see if another MLB team takes a chance on the career .247 hitter.