Brandon Sproat
Well, no one is whining over losing Brandon Nimmo, Pete Alonso, and Jeff McNeil. David Stearns has drastically and dramatically remade the New York Mets into possibly the best team in baseball.
They recently made huge additions with Bo Bichette and Louis Robert Jr. (two moves requiring overdue posts). Stearns then took a big swing trading for Freddy Peralta and Tobias Myers.
People will say Peralta was needed because the Mets rotation was bad. They were very wrong. That said, Peralta is a very good pitcher, and when you can add a very good pitcher, you do it.
Peralta makes the Mets rotation better in so many ways.
He was 24th in the majors in innings pitched, and he’s made 30+ starts in three consecutive years. He was 17th in the majors in FIP and 15th in WAR. He was seventh in ERA and eighth in ERA+.
While you may uncomfortable calling him an ace, he’s a number one starter. It’s a fact. When there are 30 MLB teams are you’re top 25 and better in most categories, you’re a number one.
When a team adds a number one starter, it dramatically improves their outlook. Go back to 2000. Mike Hampton wasn’t an ace, but he was a true number one, and he was a big piece that helped the Mets win the pennant.
Peralta may not even be the Mets best starter. That is probably Nolan McLean. It’s hard to find a better 1-2 in baseball than Peralta-McLean . . . or McLean-Peralta.
Speaking of McLean, this makes him and the whole rotation better. At the moment, the Mets have six starters. This gives McLean an extra day of rest to help him get through his first full MLB season.
Kodai Senga has been better with an extra day of rest, and now, he gets it. David Peterson and Clay Holmes wore down from the increased workload, and now, they also get an extra day. Sean Manaea also gets a needed extra day.
They just didn’t get better by adding Peralta. They got better because the six man rotation makes the entire rotation better. They’re getting the best out of all their starters, which is very bad news for the National League.
Senga and Peterson have been All-Stars. Manaea was a top of the rotation pitcher for a team that went to the NLCS. McLean’s ceiling is as high as we’ve ever seen. They’re now all positioned to be at their best making them arguably the best rotation in baseball.
Keep in mind, Peralta was not the only pitcher the Mets obtained. They also received Myers, a pitcher who is not even arbitration eligible until after the 2027 season.
Myers has been a dominant reliever in his brief Major League career. If you go back to that 2024 Game 3, he absolutely dominated the Mets and appeared to be the game winning pitcher until Alonso did what he did.
Myers may still yet be a starter. He could be a future closer. He’s the Mets 2026 version of Seth Lugo. That’s a dangerous pitcher to have on your staff, and Myers is probably better.
Now, the Mets paid an understandably steep price for Peralta and Myers. In fact, ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel explains the Mets trading Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat moved them from the top farm system to sixth best. Ironically, the Brewers moved from sixth to first.
There will be some who try to nitpick the prospects. We can point to Sproat’s struggles at Triple-A and his four Major League starts. We shouldn’t be doing that.
Sproat has a bright future ahead of him. After all, he made his MLB debut a year after being drafted. He could’ve been a big piece for the Mets in 2026.
Williams is a top prospect. He has a real future at second, short, or CF. He’s got speed and power in his bat. Losing him hurts, and it takes away insurance for the 35 year old Marcus Semien and injury prone players like Bichette and Robert.
The Mets can soon come to regret this trade, especially with Peralta being a year away from free agency. That makes this a real gamble and a worthwhile one at that.
Peralta improves the Mets rotation and improves the entire pitching staff. Myers makes the Mets deeper. If Myers is in the bullpen, this could be the best staff in the entire Major Leagues.
The Mets officially went all-in. They’ve built a team better than the 2025 Mets, and it could be the best this century. Time will tell. Whatever happens, it’ll be because the Mets made the very bold move to add Peralta to make the Mets the one team who can dethrone the Dodgers.
Let’s start with two premises. The first is you can never have enough pitching. The second is the New York Mets starting pitching completely fell apart in 2025.
With that out of the way, we need to assess what the Mets have and act accordingly. Remember, just because things were bad last year, it doesn’t mean they’re automatically bad the next.
Right off the bat, Nolan McLean looked like a future ace. He burst onto the scene like Jacob deGrom did in 2014, and the hope is McLean improves in year two in the same way deGrom did (no one is saying McLean will be the Cy Young version of deGrom . . . yet).
Behind McLean is Kodai Senga. When healthy, he’s been untouchable. Before Pete Alonso’s throw, he was 7-3 with a 1.47 ERA while averaging nearly six innings per start.
He just wasn’t right after he returned from injury. We don’t know what happened, but the fair assumption is he can get back to the pitcher who has pitched at a near ace level in his career.
It was a tale of two halves for David Peterson. He went from an All-Star to a mess. Lost in last season was the fact he pitched far more innings than he ever had as a Major Leaguer.
In 2024, Peterson pitched 121.0 innings, which was a then career high. Through 127.0 innings in 2025, he was 7-4 with a 2.83 ERA. With him being so good, and the other pitchers either injured or unable to go deep into games, Carlos Mendoza pushed him during this stretch.
After that 127.0 mark, Peterson was 2-2 with an 8.42 ERA averaging under five innings per start. It’s fair to assume there was some fatigue involved. Certainly, we should expect him to be fresh to start the year, and with closer attention to his workload, he should be able to get through the year better.
Sean Manaea was injured to start 2025, and he never got fully healthy, and he never built up his stamina. After 25 pitches, his K/9 went from 10.00 to 5.25.
He didn’t have a spring training, and he rushed back to help the team. He pitched through pain, and he faltered. Fortunately, he’s feeling healthy now.
Whether he gets back to being the top of rotation pitcher who led the Mets to the 2024 NLCS remains to be seen. Still, he should be able to give you five quality innings at the back end of the rotation.
Then, there is Clay Holmes in his second year as a starter. He actually held up well through his first 17 starts going 8-4 with a 2.99 ERA even if his 4.42 FIP indicated a regression was coming, which did come.
After those 17 starts, Holmes was 4-4 with a 4.23 ERA. He does deserve credit for a big time start his last outing of the year. All told, we should see more stamina from him in 2026.
Right there, the Mets have a viable five man rotation.
- McLean
- Senga
- Peterson
- Manaea
- Holmes
That’s now where the pitching stops. Next up is Brandon Sproat. There were some positives in his four starts with a 2.80 FIP. His first two starts with the Mets were very good. He should start the year in Triple-A, and we will likely see a better version of him when needed.
The same can be said for Jonah Tong. He had some flashes but mostly struggled. Still, he has the stuff and the highest ceiling of any of the three Mets prospects called up at the end of last year.
Speaking of Mets young pitching, we all forgot about Christian Scott. He’s fully recovered from Tommy John, and he appears ready to go for spring training. He showed flashes in 2023 while dealing with a torn UCL, and we can hope he can take a step forward in 2026.
At the moment, that puts the Mets Major League ready pitching depth at eight starters. That increases to nine with the team signing Carl Edwards Jr. to a minor league deal.
Edwards has had success in the majors out of the pen, and he’s recently transitioned to a starter. He did have some success as a starter in the Mexican Leagues last season making this an interesting gamble.
Top pitching prospect Will Watson will likely start the year with Double-A Binghamton. That puts him closer to making it to the majors. With a breakout season, he may very well force his way there.
Same goes for Jack Wenninger. He pitched better than Watson in Double-A and appears much closer to the majors. It’s very possible we see him in Queens next year.
We saw Jonathon Pintaro make his Major League debut next year, and he could be among the first called up next year. We could see a Zach Thornton or Jonathan Santucci pop in 2026.
Point is, there’s real pitching depth here without the Mets making one move to add a starter this offseason. It’s prudent and practical to add more pitching because as we saw in 2025, you can never have enough pitching.
That said, despite the narratives being pushed on Mets fans, they have starting pitching. They’re very well poised to be successful in 2026, and we should see the starting pitching be a driving force of the 2026 season.
If this was 2024, the New York Mets should have given everything they had to get Tarik Skubal. He is the best pitcher in the game, and when the best pitcher in the game potentially becomes available, you do all you can to go out and get him.
Short of Nolan McLean, there should not be one untouchable for the Mets in a pursuit of Skubal. He could be what Mike Hampton and Johan Santana were. He’s the left-handed ace that puts the Mets in position to make the postseason (yes, I know the 2008 Mets collapsed, but Santana was brilliant in Game 161).
That all said, the way the Mets have operated this offseason, there is no way this team should pursue Skubal. It would be a massive mistake.
Since taking over as the President of Baseball Operations, David Stearns has been restrained in handing out long-term deals. So far, the longest contract he has handed out to a pitcher has been the three year deal given to Sean Manaea.
Take Juan Soto out of the equation. He was a once in a generation free agent, and he was someone whose contract was handled at the ownership level in conjunction with Stearns. Soto was an outlier and should be treated as such.
Taking Soto out of the equation, Stearns has not handed out one contract longer than three years. Most of the deals have been two years with a player option.
Stearns holding to three years has been impacting the Mets this offseason. Pete Alonso left for a five year deal when the Mets wouldn’t go past three. The Mets unwillingness to go to four years was a reason Edwin Diaz went to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
If the Mets are stuck in that mindset trading for Skubal is a non-starter. He is going to have a prospect cost that will require you to sign Skubal to an extension. That is just not going to happen.
First and foremost, Skubal is represented by Scott Boras. Boras does not typically allow his free agents to sign an extension prior to hitting free agency. If you are going to convince Boras and his players to sign an extension, you are going to have to blow them out of the water.
Certainly, we saw with Francisco Lindor and Soto that Steve Cohen is willing to do that. However, we have also seen with Cohen he is willing to mostly sit back and let Stearns do what he wants.
That is not a criticism of Cohen. It is a strength. We see all the years other New York teams have been encumbered by ownership interference. Cohen’s willingness to open his checkbook and listen to the advice of those he employs is why we are lucky to have him running the Mets.
However, with Stearns, there are limitations. That limitation is signing marquee free agents who are not in their early prime. Looking at his entire history as a GM or president of baseball operations, Stearns is not going to give Skubal, a soon to be 29 year old pitcher who has had Tommy John and flexor tendon surgery, the 10 year deal Skubal is going to demand.
If you are not going to go all out to sign Skubal, why drain the farm system you’ve worked so hard to build? It simply doesn’t make sense.
Stearns has been inflexible not giving out more than three years. It’s at the point where they trade away five years of Brandon Nimmo for three years of Marcus Semien even if Nimmo will be the same age Semien will be when their contracts are over.
We an have the discussion over how prudent Stearns’ position has been. We can talk about how it helps or hinders the Mets. At the moment, we just have to acknowledge how that position should mean the Mets cannot pursue Skubal. ‘
Hopefully, with McLean, the Mets have the ace they need. We can envision a rotation led by McLean and buttressed by Brandon Sproat and Jonah Tong. With any luck, they can do what Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, and Noah Syndergaard did in 2015.
Just like in 2015, that group will need a veteran leader to lead the staff. They most likely won’t have a Skubal or other pitcher of that ilk as they would command too many years.
It’s time to abandon that pipe dream . . . at least until Stearns is ready to show some flexibility in his approach in dealing with giving out contracts.
David Stearns’ New York Mets were worse in year two than they were in year one. They failed despite adding Juan Soto, which is just baffling.
Every fan and pundit is going to point to the starting pitching. Obviously, the starting pitching was a failure, but at some point, you have to actively say there’s only so much one man can do.
Right off the bat, Stearns made a massive mistake signing Frankie Montas instead of bringing back Luis Severino. Montas was a disaster, but he was also broken. It’s fair to question just how much of that was something that happened with the Mets, and whether the team physical missed something.
Looking at Severino, he was not good in 2025. He had a 1.0 WAR and a 92 ERA+. It’s possible he could have been better with the Mets, but based off what we saw, he was a below average pitcher whose strikeout rate dropped. Still, his 29 starts averaging 5.2 innings would have been more than welcome.
Aside from that mistake, Stearns had Kodai Senga and David Peterson returning to the rotation. He re-signed Sean Manaea, the ace from the 2024 staff. Right there, the Mets had as good as a top three as anyone in baseball.
Like with Montas, something either happened or was missed with Manaea. We looked at him as someone that could be an ace to someone battling through injury barely able to give you three quality innings. ‘
Senga was pitching at a Cy Young level. That was until Pete Alonso made one of his horrendous throws to first base leading to a Senga injury. After that throw, Senga went from a 1.47 ERA to a pitcher who had a 5.90 ERA over his last nine starts.
Peterson was great in the first half. He was an All-Star. Who knows what happened to him after July 20. After that start, he was 3-2 with a 6.34 ERA. The hope is it was the extra workload, but based on the missed injuries we saw with Montas and Manaea, a potential injury can’t be dismissed.
Joining that group in the rotation was Clay Holmes. Holmes had a good first year as a starter with a 114 ERA+. If starters didn’t drop like flies, he might’ve been able to be transitioned to the bullpen late in the season. Alas, that opportunity never arose.
Tylor Megill was quality starting pitching depth again. He had a 3.95 ERA over his 14 starts. Unfortunately, he needed Tommy John and will miss all of 2026.
Adding to the depth, Stearns signed Griffin Canning. He was a revelation of his 16 starts. At one point, he was on the outskirts of All-Star discussion, and he finished his season with a 107 ERA+ before he suffered a fluke ruptured ACL tear.
Look over that list again. In theory, the Opening Day rotation was supposed to be Manaea, Senga, Peterson, Montas, and Holmes. Behind them was Megill and Canning. That’s seven quality starters who should have been able to get you through the season.
Behind them, the Mets farm system did a great job developing Nolan McLean, Brandon Sproat, and Jonah Tong. McLean will enter next season as the ace, and Sproat should be in the conversation to join the Opening Day roster. Tong clearly needs more time in Triple-A.
Without making any trades, the Mets had 10 different starting pitchers that were capable of winning games. That is all even before we consider the Paul Blackburn disaster.
Sometimes you are just snakebitten. Obviously, there is a curse that is in the Citi Field bullpen. Either that, or the Mets need to address how they review physicals and keep pitchers healthy.
If Stearns goes into 2026 with this level of starting pitching depth, things will be better for the Mets next season. Stearns had a good philosophical approach to the staff, but he did not have the luck he had in 2025.
And before anyone starts, no, the Mets don’t need to go buck wild spending on free agent starters. The Opening Day rotation will have McLean, Peterson, Manaea, Senga, and Holmes. That is great. ‘
Behind that group, they will have Sproat and Tong ready to go. Possibly, Will Watson will be ready at some point in 2026. It would be nice to see if they can bring back Canning.
Think about this for a second. Even with the Montas blunder, Stearns did enough last offseason to build a formidable rotation for 2026. He did his job very well. He just now needs to figure out the health and possibly a way to better keep these pitchers healthy.
The New York Mets have a very real starting pitching problem. Ironically, this is happening just as their projected opening day starting rotation is all healthy and together.
We’ve all seen the graphics on SNY. David Peterson is the only starter going 6+ innings. Worse yet, aside from him the other starters have been averaging 4.2 innings per start.
It’s embarrassing, and it probably helped lead to the rash of reliever injuries we’ve seen this season.
Speaking of relievers, Clay Holmes seems to be on fumes. He’s never thrown more than 70 innings in a season. He passed that mark on June 7.
He’s giving five innings now but to varying degrees of success. At the moment, he probably needs more off days between starts, or maybe the Mets should be moving him to the bullpen to prepare for the postseason.
The problem with that plan is Frankie Montas. Montas has been brutal averaging under five innings per start with a 6.68 ERA. He’s flat out giving the Mets no chance to win, and worse yet, he’s exhausting the bullpen for the games they actually could win.
Montas needs to move out of the rotation now. The innings aren’t there and need to come from somewhere.
Everyone is hoping Sean Manae can provide those innings. Right now, he is still working his way back from offseason injury and an elbow injury that appeared during his rehab stint. Last year, he averaged 6+ innings per start in the second half.
Notably, Manae hasn’t thrown more than five innings or 86 pitches in a game. As he continues to get stretched out, that should be two reliable starters
Kodai Senga is the ace, but he’s slipped of late. Over his last four starts, he’s averaging 4.0 innings per start with a 6.19 ERA. Effectively speaking, he’s become Montas.
We do know he’s better with more rest. The Mets need to find it for him, and for Holmes if he is to stay in the rotation.
If and when Paul Blackburn and Tylor Megill are ready to return from injury, they could hop into the rotation. Blackburn is much closer and could rejoin the rotation this week. That said, they are both the five and fly starters that have hampered this Mets bullpen.
The answer to the Mets issues is likely one of Brandon Sproat or Nolan McLean.
Sproat has been great of late, and his recent run seemed to begin when he was working with Francisco Álvarez during Alvarez’s demotion. Over his last six starts, he’s averaging 5+ innings per start. He’s allowed just two earned over his last 33.0 innings while striking out 39.
McLean isn’t on the same hot streak as Sproat, but he’s the more polished pitcher. He’s also giving more innings averaging nearly six innings per start. With Syracuse, he has a 3.01 ERA, 1.144 WHIP, and a 9.6 K/9.
David Stearns has said he’s not calling up any prospect starting pitcher for a spot start. Instead, he will only call them up to join the rotation. The Mets have a definite need for them, and the Mets are running out of other solutions.
Sprout and McLean need to be in the rotation now. It will give more rest to Senga, Manae, Peterson, and Holmes to help their effectiveness. It will get Montas out of the rotation and into the bullpen where he can work on things.
Mostly, it can help the Mets find their fourth starter for the postseason. Of course, they can help them get there too.
By having both in the rotation, the Mets can see which one fares better and is better ready to face Major League batters. They can get more innings to help the bullpen, get more rest for the other starters, win the division, and hopefully win a World Series.
The need has arrived. The Mets can ill afford to wait any longer. Sproat and McLean must be called up now.
Through the proverbial first half of the baseball season, the New York Mets lineup has been top heavy. Fortunately, the Brandon Nimmo – Francisco Lindor – Juan Soto – Pete Alonso top four has been so awesome that the Mets are only a half game out of first place.
If the team wants to get to that next level and back to the NLCS, they’re going to need more help. It can’t just be Jeff McNeil as the only capable hitter past that “Fab Four.”
There are two reasons the bottom half of the Mets lineup hasn’t clicked. First, Jesse Winker has been out most of the year with injuries. Mostly, it has been the struggles of Mark Vientos and Francisco Álvarez.
For both Vientos and Álvarez, injuries have played a part. Vientos had a slow start and then a hamstring injury. Álvarez opened the year on the IL, which complicated his trying to adapt a new swing at the plate.
For Vientos, the slow start and injuries saw him lose the third base job to Brett Baty. With inconsistent playing time, Vientos just couldn’t get back on track.
After Starling Marte and Winker hit the IL, the Mets had no choice than to give Vientos consistent playing time. He’s responded going 7-for-19 with two doubles, a triple, and three RBI. That included that bases clearing go-ahead RBI double.
Vientos gets hot this time of year. Last July, he hit .283/.330/.554. In the second half, he hit 15 of his 27 homers. He carried that forward to that monster postseason he had.
With respect to Álvarez, his struggles led the Mets to send him to Triple-A Syracuse. Not only was the new swing not working, but he was also carrying the offensive struggles behind the dish. Essentially, he regressed in every area of his game.
Well, it appears Álvarez’s new swing is no longer a work in process. He’s now absolutely destroying baseballs.
He’s homered in three straight games, and he’s hit eight homers over his last 13 games. Over his last 12 games, he’s hitting .326/.392/.848 with three doubles, seven homers, and 15 RBI. That’s the slugger we expected him to be.
For Álvarez, it’s more than the offense. The work behind the plate has improved as well. Notably, we’ve seen Brandon Sproat take off while working with Álvarez. Nolan McLean has had consecutive 10 strikeout starts with Álvarez behind the plate.
Certainly, Álvarez is rounding back into form, and he should soon find himself back in the majors. When he does, he will replace Luis Torrens, who has struggled mightily at the plate since taking over primary catching duties.
With Álvarez back and Vientos back to form, the Mets lineup is suddenly lethal. Instead of a Fab Four, it’s a Slugging Six. With McNeil, it’s seven All-Star caliber hitters (McNeil is a two time All-Star). They can have Baty and Tyrone Taylor be in the lineup just for their defense.
Ultimately, the Mets lineup is going to be deep and lethal, and they can lead the Mets to the World Series. It just took much longer than we all expected it would.
With the New York Mets pursuing Roki Sasaki, the team was indicating they’re looking towards a six man rotation. They’re also looking for starting pitching depth.
While there are internal options like Griffin Canning and Paul Blackburn, the Mets could turn to the free agent market. One name that stands out there is former Met Max Scherzer.
Scherzer, 40, is not the prime target he was when the Mets signed him back in 2021. Rather, he’s a future Hall of Famer looking for one last chance to win, one last chance for glory before he retires.
The Mets could present that. However, the question is what could Scherzer present to the Mets at this stage of his career.
For starters, Scherzer provides a veteran presence and competitive edge. As detailed by Mike Puma of the New York Post, Scherzer served as a mentor to the younger Mets pitchers, and the Mets thrived in 2022 as a result.
In many ways, Scherzer acted as an extension of Jeremy Hefner. There’s real value there as the Mets look to make Frankie Montas this year’s version of Luis Severino. They’re also trying to reclimate Canning, and hopefully, we will soon see Brandon Sproat.
This is all well and good, but this is also why the Mets have Hefner. It’s also why Steve Cohen has invested so much money in analytics. It doesn’t matter at all if Scherzer is done.
Fortunately, it appears Scherzer has something left in the tank. In an injury riddled season, he had a 101 ERA+, 4.18 FIP, and an 8.3 K/9. There are numbers there to justify him as a fifth starter.
Looking at his Baseball Savant page, Scherzer can still miss bats. It’s not at the same rate as his prime or even two years ago. Fortunately, even when opposing batters make contact, he’s limiting the damage.
Yes, he’s injury prone now. It may sound odd to say, but that does somewhat help the Mets. It would give a chance for a Canning or Sproat to prove themselves.
In essence, Scherzer buys the Mets time. It’s time for the younger starters. It’s time for Montas to figure it out. It’s time between starts for Kodai Senga.
Scherzer pitched well for the Mets when his body let him. He was the co-ace they needed. Now, they need a placeholder and veteran staff leader. Once again, he’s a perfect fit.
Heading into 2024, the New York Mets made it clear they weren’t rebuilding. It was a retooling. Even in that reset, they expected to make the postseason.
The decision made sense. They were paying for contracts like Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander. There were young players they needed to get a real look at the Major League level to see if they were part of the future.
Even if the Mets did not make the postseason, the 2024 season should’ve been considered successful because they found out a lot about their team.
Brett Baty wasn’t the third baseman of the present, and now, he won’t be the third baseman of the future. Thats fine because Mark Vientos was, and he was the best hitter at the position at the Major League level.
David Peterson finally emerged to be the starter the Mets thought he could be. Jose Butto and Dedniel Núñez emerged as very good relievers.
Even though he needed Tommy John and will be lost for 2025, Christian Scott looks like a real rotation piece in the future.
That’s similar to what happened to Ronny Mauricio. He went from 2024 second baseman to a man potentially without a spot. For the Mets, they saw something in him and have interest to see if it’s still there.
Speaking of second base, Luisangel Acuña helped save the Mets season when Francisco Lindor injured his back. Is he the Opening Day second baseman? He did enough to put himself in the mix.
Of course, Acuña has defensive versatility. He could be in the mix at center or third depending on a number of Mets offseason moves. He’s not the only player with defensive versatility.
Jett Williams is the Mets best prospect. He could be the second baseman, shortstop, or center fielder of the future. He might’ve gotten a look last year if not for injuries, and we may well see him in 2025.
The same can be said for Drew Gilbert. He was arguably the prize of the 2023 trade deadline. If not for injuries, he might’ve been up last year.
He’s one of several knocking on the door at Syracuse. Dom Hamel, Blade Tidwell, and Mike Vasil are awaiting their chances to see if they’re the next Butto or Peterson.
That’s nothing to say of the Double-A talent. For years, the Mets kept trying to draft Brandon Sproat, and when they finally got him, we all saw why they desperately wanted him. His battery mate, Kevin Parada, has struggled, but you never know when he finally figures it out.
There is a lot of young talent here waiting to help lead the Mets like we just saw Vientos do. That makes David Stearns job all the more challenging.
Who is the player you trade to try to get that big pitcher like Garrett Crochet? Who is untouchable? Who do you try at all costs not to block at the Major League level?
Certainly, none of these players impact the decisions on Juan Soto or bringing Pete Alonso back. However, there are other quality free agents out there who could forever block a Gilbert or a Vasil.
When making those decision, the Mets better be right. This is why this is still a retool and reset than need to go all-in.
The Mets already have enough. There is so much on the way. They don’t need a lot of help. They just need the right help.
The New York Mets gambled last season offering Luis Severino a one year $13 million contract. The deal could not have gone better for either side.
Severino made 31 starts for the Mets pitching 182 innings. He had a 101 ERA+ and a 4.21 FIP. He wasn’t the All-Star caliber pitcher he was with the New York Yankees before all the injuries, but he proved he could be durable enough to last a full season.
Severino stopped tipping his pitches. He occasionally flashed brilliance. His first two starts of the postseason were very good. The work with Driveline and Jeremy Hefner paid off, and Severino was entering free agency poised to truly cash in.
The Mets opted to gamble again and extended Severino a qualifying offer, which is $21.05 million. If he accepts, that’s a nice pay raise for Severino albeit with some risk.
Last offseason, with his injuries and top pitching, Severino needed a one year deal to rebuild his value. In 2024, he accomplished that and appeared in line for a multi-year deal.
That was at least until he was given a qualifying offer. With that, there are going to be teams who will not pursue Severino. Severino was good in 2024 but probably not good enough to justify losing a draft pick and/or international bonus pool money.
For Severino, that puts him in a bad spot. At 31, does he want to try to find a multi year deal in an already limited market? Would such a deal be worth passing on $21.05 million? Certainly, his AAV would look more like his 2024 salary than the QO.
For the Mets, they need starters, and Severino as a mid rotation guy would be perfect. This buys time for Christian Scott to return from Tommy John. It also buys time for prospects like Blade Tidwell and Brandon Sproat.
Mostly, it gets a key part of their rotation locked in as the Mets look to take the next step in 2025. Doing that while not over leveraging into the future is the best case scenario.
That’s Severino accepting the QO. It’s the best case scenario. It strengthens the 2025 rotation while mitigating the risk he doesn’t have any durability after pitching 100 more innings in a year.
Severino returning on a QO is a best case scenario. It would be a great start to the offseason. It’s the first step towards the Mets winning the 2025 World Series.