MLB Rumors: Mets shouldn’t be in any rush to make a trade for Jordan Montgomery

MLB rumors have been slow to trickle out. That’s November for ya. We often forget this is the month to clean house internally with a few smaller roster moves. New York Mets rumors have been harder to come by. Those tightlipped suits have a button under their collars capable of spraying a smoke screen we never see coming.

A name mentioned in ongoing MLB rumors worth paying attention to is Jordan Montgomery. Even for pure entertainment purposes, this disgruntled pitcher who has been lambasted by the owner publicly for his failures in 2024 should be on everyone’s radar. Cancel your Discovery+ subscription. You don’t need 90 Day Fiancé. 

Montgomery opted into his $22.5 million contract for 2025 despite knowing there isn’t a fan in the owner’s box. It was the move to make. The Arizona Diamondbacks will now need to trade him if they want to avoid any awkwardness. Rather than make an offer, the Mets should sit by idly and grab some popcorn.

The Mets shouldn’t get involved in any MLB rumors regarding a Jordan Montgomery trade

Arizona’s willingness to eat salary better include a big plate. Montgomery turns 32 this December and as solid as he has been in the past, doesn’t have quite the resume to get all that excited about.

Montgomery is a tough egg to crack because of his early history. He made 6 starts in 2018, another in 2019 with a relief appearance, and then came the pandemic shortened year. Nearly three full seasons were a wash for him after such a promising rookie season in 2017. In the following years, Montgomery did well but was never an All-Star caliber pitcher or someone in the Cy Young hunt. His crowning achievement was helping the Texas Rangers win the 2023 World Series. He was terrific in the regular season and managed to pick up two victories in the ALCS over the Houston Astros.

The ugliness of last season hasn’t been repaired. Montgomery was 8-7 with a 6.23 ERA in 21 starts and 4 relief appearances. He lingered in free agency until March 29th. It’s almost inexcusable because Montgomery didn’t even have a qualifying offer attached to him. No wonder he fired Scott Boras.

Thoughts of a turnaround somewhere else are nice. Back to New York, this time as a member of the Mets, isn’t an outrageous proposal. Factor in that a portion of his salary would be paid by the Diamondbacks, it’s understandable why some would be willing to take a chance.

The big issue with trading for Jordan Montgomery

Here’s the issue: do you take a chance and subtract something from your farm system, anything at all? There are one-year deals to hand out to free agents who’ll only cost money. Do that instead.

Any desire to trade for Montgomery is dependent on how much the Diamondbacks would eat of his salary. Half of it comes out to $11.25 million. A few million less than money free agent fliers from last offseason ended up costing, the issue I have here is the Mets aren’t in a place to necessarily shop for bargains. This is a free agent class featuring some big arms. Last year, a trade for a player like Montgomery would have fit the mission. This year needs to be more definite with the rotation the Mets build.

A trade for Montgomery isn’t a horrible fallback plan later on in the offseason if the Mets miss in other areas and the Diamondbacks increase how much of the salary they’ll keep. As an early offseason move, it eliminates other opportunities. David Stearns was patient last winter. Expect the same this time around with a strong poker face if Arizona did reach out.