Daniel Duarte is taking things day by day.
The Mets reliever is one of several arms poised to get an extended look in the coming weeks — with the likes of Luke Weaver and Brooks Raley all expected to be traded by the Aug. 3 deadline.
A.J. Minter, another reliever, was traded to the Twins on Thursday night in exchange for infield prospects Bruin Agbayani — the son of former Met Benny Agbayani — and Billy Amick.
Yet Duarte, who has yet to allow a run in 11 ¹/₃ innings of action this season, is concentrating on what he can control following his latest call-up from Triple-A Syracuse.
“Just focus on every opportunity that I have, especially with one [minor league] option remaining,” Duarte told The Post before Thursday’s 4-2 win against the Marlins. “We’ll see if I’m still here by the end of the season or not. But you know, take advantage of every opportunity and get in good shape for next year.”
The 29-year-old, who exercised his upward mobility clause in May, has been quietly effective when handed the ball in the majors.
In seven games, he’s racked up 11 strikeouts against just two walks, to go along with a 0.00 ERA that has surely caught the attention of the organization he joined in December on a minor league deal.
Duarte, who did not pitch in Thursday’s win, has used his cutter more than any other pitch this year and singled out that pitch when asked about his success this season. He’s also keenly focused on remaining healthy after missing plenty of time with elbow injuries in recent years.
The righty, though, knows the extra innings he may soon see would come after some difficult goodbyes.
“We spend like 10 hours a day with these guys,” he said of his bullpen mates. “It’s like family, and when this [players being traded] happens, it’s tough. But every change is for good, so we’re good with that.”
“We support each other every outing,” he added of the Mets bullpen culture. “Doesn’t matter if you’re good or bad. You just be there for each other.”
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That close-knit culture will have to persist through some forthcoming personnel changes, as Weaver, Minter and Raley have all had strong seasons and fashioned themselves into trade targets for contenders.
That could mean extra work for Duarte, Huascar Brazobán and Cionel Pérez, and interim manager Andy Green is eager to find some positives in this lost season.
“Nobody wants to be on this side of a trade deadline,” Green said. “It’s where we find ourselves at this moment. That also doesn’t mean that there’s not a lot of meaningful games to be played before the season ends.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
