The New York Mets have been linked to just about every high-profile free agent pitcher available. At some point in the winter, they were interested in Jake Odorizzi, Tomoyuki Sugano, Corey Kluber, and lots more. They are still reportedly in on Trevor Bauer, and now, they have their eye on potential bounceback candidate.
The word out there, according to MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, is that the New York Mets are one of a handful of clubs interested in free agent reclamation project Mike Foltynewicz, who has really struggled in both 2019 and 2020 but was very good as recently as 2018.
Folty has been dealing with injuries and velocity loss on his fastball for a couple of years now. After averaging 96.8 mph in 2018, the number was down all the way to 94.9 in 2019 and 91.4 last year.
Would he make sense for the Mets?
The Mets want to see if there is something left in Foltynewicz’s arm. Heyman reported that the pitcher looked good in a recent throwing session at Georgia Tech. The Minnesota Twins, Tampa Bay Rays and Chicago White Sox were the other three clubs mentioned to have interest, per SNY. His velo was reportedly sitting in the low 90s.
During his seven-year MLB tenure, Foltynewicz has a 4.33 ERA in 686.0 innings, with 655 strikeouts. The Mets surely wouldn’t complain if they take a shot at him and he produces a similar performance.
In 183 innings during the 2018 campaign, he broke out with a 2.85 ERA, a 3.37 FIP and a career-high 9.93 strikeours per nine frames. He spent the last six seasons with the Atlanta Braves, so he is very familiar with the Mets.
Only time will tell if the Mets will take a flier on him, as they recently traded Steven Matz to the Toronto Blue Jays and could definitely use another depth arm with upside given that Noah Syndergaard won’t return before June.