The New York Mets entered the winter with a bit of uncertainty regarding their starting rotation. Noah Syndergaard won’t pitch until June or July, and David Peterson is inexperienced, not to mention that the team lost Michael Wacha and Rick Porcello to free agency.
However, after the World Series began, they added Marcus Stroman (technically, he was a member of the Mets in 2020, but didn’t pitch due to COVID-19 concerns) after he accepted their qualifying offer, and now they swung a deal for a very good starter in Carlos Carrasco.
On Thursday, the New York Mets traded shortstops Amed Rosario and Andrés Giménez, and prospects Josh Wolf (pitcher) and Isaiah Greene (outfielder) to Cleveland to acquire shortstop Francisco Lindor and Carrasco.
Lindor is a massive upgrade over Rosario and Gimenez, both offensively and defensively. But Carrasco alone greatly improves the rotation and gives it more depth, allowing the Mets to return Seth Lugo to the bullpen, where he had a 2.70 ERA in 2019 and lots of good seasons before that.
The Mets’ rotation, man by man
Jacob deGrom, the two-time Cy Young award winner who had a 2.38 ERA and a 2.26 FIP in 2020, will once again lead the Mets’ rotation. After that, Carrasco and his 3.77 career ERA and 3.42 FIP will take the ball every fifth day. At 33, he is a bit on the older side, but he has a very affordable contract and remains an excellent starter.
After June, Noah Syndergaard will be in play. That would give the Mets an excellent third starter (or second, depending on how you view it,) and Stroman is perhaps one of the league’s best fourth starters.
Peterson and Steven Matz will likely battle for the fifth spot in the rotation, which is an ideal scenario. Those are sixth starters, and for depth, the Mets also signed Jerad Eickhoff.
The Mets keep making splashes both in free agency and in the trade market. And Thursday will go down as one of the best days for fans in recent memory. Now, they have a stacked rotation. If everything goes according to the plan, they could field a playoff rotation of deGrom, Syndergaard, Carrasco, and Stroman. Few groups can compete with that one.