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Mets sign former Phillies pitcher Dylan Covey

Dylan Covey signed with the Mets. (John Adams/Icon Sportswire)

Former Phillies reliever Dylan Covey signed with the New York Mets, the club announced Thursday. The veteran right-hander will stay in the National League East on a one-year major-league contract.

Covey, 33, has pitched parts of five big-league seasons with the White Sox, Red Sox, Dodgers and Phillies with a career 6.18 ERA in 100 appearances. He also played two seasons for the Rakuten Monkeys of the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Taiwan. Covey spent the 2024 season in the minors with Philadelphia while recovering from injury.

The Phillies acquired Covey off waivers from the Dodgers during the 2023 season in desperate need of starting pitching help. He pitched as a bulk reliever in his first turn in the rotation, then surrendered seven runs (five earned) as he failed to get out of the first inning in his only start with the team. Covey, though, found his niche as the mop-up man in the bullpen and was mostly effective to finish out the season. He had a 2.70 ERA across 33 1/3 innings in his 26 relief outings following that blowup start.

Covey appeared to have a chance to return to Philadelphia’s bullpen in 2024 before he suffered a right shoulder strain in the spring. He was eventually placed on the 60-day injured list and was outrighted off the 40-man roster at the end of his rehab assignment in August. Covey finished the season with Triple-A Lehigh Valley and had a 2.66 ERA in 18 games across three minor-league levels.

After electing free agency earlier this month, Covey will have a chance to potentially return to the majors with the Mets as he joins New York’s 40-man roster.