Grading the 4 NY Mets starting pitcher contracts they've added this offseason

The Mets better hope Frankie Montas rebounds to justify his deal

When the Mets signed Montas to a two-year $34 million deal many worried that the team might be counting on him to be their big free-agent addition to the rotation. Fortunately, with Manaea back in the fold that's not the case.

Montas has frontline starter upside, but with that comes a lot of questions. In 2021 he was a burgeoning ace, posting a 3.37 ERA while striking out 9.96 batters per nine, and logging 187 innings pitched. He also got off to a strong start in 2022 before a midseason trade to the Yankees saw the wheels fall off.

After the trade, he made eight starts and saw his ERA balloon to 6.35 as he was clearly bothered by a bad shoulder that ultimately required surgery and caused him to miss basically the entire 2023 season. He was healthy in 2024, logging 150.2 innings over 30 starts, but he wasn't particularly good posting a 4.84 ERA and 4.71 FIP.

Again, the starting pitching market has seen hurlers with question marks get paid enormous sums so a $17 million AAV and short two-year commitment aren't entirely unreasonable for Montas. However, the Mets signed Montas so early in the process that his deal contributed to the rising costs for mid-level pitchers.

Spotrac had his contract value projected to be $26 million over two years for $13 million AAV. In that light, this deal was an overpay.

It's hard to say there aren't reasons to like Montas, and it's fair to wonder if the Mets had waited would they have been able to acquire him or a better option for less. On the other hand, the Mets deserve some blame for pumping up the starting pitching market by giving him that deal in the first place. It's not great value, but it's not terrible either.

Grade: C-