Entering this offseason, the New York Mets find themselves in familiar territory. For yet another offseason, they need starting pitching help. In 2022, they acquired Chris Bassitt from the Oakland A’s, signed Taijuan Walker, and landed Max Scherzer. One year later, Bassitt left for the Toronto Blue Jays, Walker signed with the division rival Philadelphia Phillies, and Mets great Jacob deGrom left in free agency to the Texas Rangers. New York signed Justin Verlander, Jose Quintana, and Kodai Senga to replace them. With Scherzer and Verlander traded at this past season’s deadline and the team declining Carlos Carrasco’s club option, the Mets will be in the market again for 2 or 3 starting pitchers. Things got more complicated with the news of David Peterson missing 6-7 months due to hip surgery. Let’s look at who’s out there for the Amazin’s.
Pitchers That Could Fit The Mets Rotation
Yoshinobu Yamamoto
We’ll start with a rather obvious one about a player the Mets are highly coveting, and many around MLB expect the Mets to make a run at him. Japanese pitching sensation Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Yamamoto is coming off a great season in Japan going 17-6 with a 1.16 ERA. Senga, who is coming off a good first year which saw him be a National League Rookie of the Year finalist, has reportedly campaigned for the Mets to sign Yamamoto. A 1-2 duo of Senga and the 25-year-old Yamamoto could be a good fit for the Mets in the years to come.
Blake Snell
The top free agent pitcher on the market besides Yamamoto and the favorite for the National League Cy Young award, Blake Snell, is coming off a renaissance year of sorts. After pitching to a combined 15-16 record with a 3.79 ERA over his first two seasons in San Diego, the Tampa Bay Rays version of Snell showed up in 2023 for the Padres. In a down year for San Diego with high expectations, Snell did his part to help the team by being this year’s ERA leader at 2.25. The best ERA of his career since 2018 at 1.89. 2018 also saw him win his first career CY Young, leading the Majors in wins with 21. When Quintana came back off the injured list, he was solid and effective. The Mets could use another lefty in the rotation to pair up with Quintana.
Corbin Burnes
With the status of the Brewers future up in the air, especially after the departure of Craig Counsell, some of their star players could be on the move. One of them brought as a possible trade candidate is their ace, Corbin Burnes. With former Brewers executive David Stearns now the president of baseball operations for the Mets it makes sense for them to go after Burnes. Not only do the Mets need pitching help, but they have the farm system in place to make a trade like this. The Mets have the pieces to make a move for a player like Burnes. Burnes has one year left on his contract so the haul to get him might not be so big.
Jordan Montgomery
Back to the left-handed side of the mound, Jordan Montgomery is a free agent coming off being a crucial part in the Rangers winning their first World Series. During the regular season with Texas and St. Louis, Montgomery pitched to a 3.20 ERA and a career-high 188.1 innings pitched. In the playoffs, Montgomery went 3-0 with a 2.16 ERA. Montgomery also has experience pitching in New York from his time with the Yankees at the beginning of his career. Montgomery would be a nice fit in the middle of that rotation.
Seth Lugo
This would make a ton of sense for the Mets by bringing back a steady presence for their pitching. Seth Lugo was with the Mets as a starter and reliever from 2016-2022. He pitched well as a starter, setup man, and even as a closer. With the Padres, Lugo pitched to a 3.57 ERA in 146.1 innings. New York has questions at the back of the rotation, and Peterson will be out to begin the season. Bringing back Lugo to add to the back of the rotation and shore up some depth would greatly help the Mets.
Shohei Ohtani
Of course, this isn’t a 2024 move as he won’t be able to pitch, but after that, the Mets would get Shohei Ohtani taking the rubber while hitting many home runs for them. Ohtani’s bat is the best in baseball, but he is one of the best pitchers in the game when he takes the mound. Ohtani has a career 3.01 ERA with 608 strikeouts as a pitcher since coming to the MLB in 2018. The concern will be his injuries and how much longer he can hold up doing both hitting and pitching. The Mets could sign him and see him pitch for them after 2024.
Main Photo Credits: Yukihito Taguchi-USA TODAY Sports
