In what sure looks like the end of this relationship — but with these two, never say never — the Mets and Richard Lovelady have broken up again.
The Mets traded the lefty, who had been designated for assignment once more, to the Nationals for cash considerations on Thursday.
Lovelady had cracked the Mets’ roster as the last man in the bullpen out of camp, and he was used mostly in mop-up duty — with the notable exception of a tie game in the 10th inning because of the state of the bullpen, which led to the club’s first loss — and allowed five runs (three earned) in 7 ⅓ innings.
The Mets opted for an arm they hope is higher octane Saturday, when Lovelady was DFA’d in favor of Craig Kimbrel.
That marked five DFAs solely from the Mets since Lovelady first joined the organization last June.
Typically he has cleared waivers and remained a Met, but not always: He was pushed off the roster in January and claimed by these same Nationals, who then DFA’d him in March only for the Mets to claim the 30-year-old again.
