The New York Mets have had a big last couple of days in terms of spending.
On Friday, they managed to sign Eduardo Escobar, Mark Canha, and Starling Marte to bolster their lineup. But new general manager Billy Eppler was far from through.
Last night, it was reported that the Mets were moving closer to a deal to bring in right-hander Max Scherzer. Today, it became official.
Mad Max and the Mets have agreed to a three-year, $130 million deal. The Mets have yet to announce the signing.
According to Mets MLB.com beat reporter Anthony DiComo, the contract includes an opt-out after the first two years.
So much for all the “Mets gonna Met” talk we’re so accustomed to, at least for now. New York now has the top two starting pitchers in Major League Baseball featured in their rotation. A one-two punch of Scherzer and Jacob deGrom is a lethal combination, and as of right now, the Metropolitans look to be the favorites in the NL East as we move towards 2022.
Scherzer, 37, went 15-4 with a 2.46 ERA in 30 starts with the Nationals and Dodgers. There was a lot of talk that indicated that Scherzer’s preference was to stay on the West Coast, with the Dodgers, Angels, and Giants, among the top suitors. There was also speculation that he would be open to coming home to St. Louis and pitching for the Cardinals, that is, until they signed former Met Steven Matz to a four-year, $44 Million deal.
Scherzer is now back up east, and the Mets look scary on paper, though I do think they overpaid for him just a little.
The veteran right-hander kind of fell into a dead arm state in the postseason, and it got to the point where he needed to be scratched from his start against the Braves in Game 6 of the NLCS, which proved to be the crack in the armor for the Dodgers. $130 million seems like a bit of a risk for a guy coming off an injury, especially at his age, despite him being one of the top pitchers in baseball.
The contract is the fifth-largest deal in Mets history, behind Francisco Lindor, David Wright, deGrom, and Johan Santana.
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