During his nine-year career, Niese has made 195 starts (4.01 ERA) and 10 relief appearances (3.65 ERA), including six for the Mets during last year's postseason.
According to Collins, Niese will primarily work as a relief pitcher, as he did Tuesday night, when he allowed one run and two hits (solo home run) in two innings. However, he could be used for a possible spot start in the coming weeks.
In 12 career starts, Verrett, 26, is 4-8 with 3.97 ERA through 127 innings, during which he has a 1.27 WHIP and 92 strike outs. He has a 2.