Dominic Smith gets the boot in Mets’ surprise reshuffle

MILWAUKEE — Adeiny Hechavarria’s opt out from his minor league contract and Dominic Smith’s relative lack of playing time prompted the Mets to tweak their 25-man roster Friday.

In something of a surprise move, Smith was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse and Hechavarria’s contract was selected. The veteran Hechavarria will give the Mets a legitimate backup option at shortstop, which had been lacking recently.

“Defensively [Hechavarria] is going to allow us to double switch and he can play a lot of different positions,” manager Mickey Callaway said before the Mets faced the Brewers at Miller Park.

Hechavarria, 30, arrived on a minor-league contract in spring training and contained a May 1 opt out. If the Mets didn’t promote him by Friday, he could have become a free agent. At Syracuse he was batting .348 in 25 games.

To create room on the 40-man roster, the Mets placed reliever Drew Smith on the 60-day injured list. Smith underwent Tommy John surgery in spring training.

Dominic Smith was slashing .333/.459/.400 in largely a pinch-hitting role. With Pete Alonso entrenched at first base, Smith’s starts have been few and far between.

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