65 Robert Gsellman RP

Gsellman recorded the final two outs in the eighth inning to record his second hold of the season in Friday's win over the Cardinals.

The right-hander remains part of the setup mix in front of closer Edwin Diaz, although he's behind Jeurys Familia and Seth Lugo in the pecking order. Encouragingly, Gsellman's averaging a career-high 95.7 mph with his fastball, and his 3.27 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and 13:2 K:BB through 11 innings give him some fantasy value in formats where high-K relievers are worth rostering.

Gsellman gave up a hit and struck out one in a scoreless inning of relief during Sunday's loss to the Nationals.

The right-hander was effective in this one, but he's been tagged for runs in three of his five appearances so far. More encouraging is his 5:0 K:BB through five innings -- if Gsellman continues to command the strike zone in that fashion, he'll quickly chip away at his 5.40 ERA and position himself for a key role in the Mets' bullpen.

Gsellman tossed a perfect inning of relief in Friday's Grapefruit League game against the Nationals.

While the right-hander has a superficially solid 3.52 ERA and 1.04 WHIP through 7.2 spring innings, Gsellman's 2:1 K:BB is disappointing. After posting a career-high 13 saves and 16 holds last season, he's expected to fill a middle-relief role in 2019 behind Edwin Diaz and Jeurys Familia in the bullpen pecking order.

Gsellman is not in contention for a rotation spot this spring, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

Manager Mickey Callaway said Wednesday that Jason Vargas will be the team's fifth starter and that there will be no competition for the job, contradicting reports from earlier in the winter. Gsellman could still be a starting candidate down the road, however, as a number of Mets' starters have significant injury histories. He could also move back into the mix should the 36-year-old Vargas be unable to improve on the 5.77 ERA he posted last season.

General manager Brodie Van Wagenen said Gsellman will be a rotation option for the Mets in 2019, Matt Ehalt of The Bergen Record reports.

Gsellman transitioned to a relief role in 2018, posting a 4.28 ERA and 70:28 K:BB across 80.0 innings out of the bullpen, but it sounds like the right-hander could get another look in the rotation next season. That said, the 25-year-old has struggled as a starter at the big-league level, notching a career 4.60 ERA and 118:53 K:B in 29 starts (156.2 innings), so he seems more likely to return to the bullpen in 2019.