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

Griffin Canning is underwhelming, but his contract with the Mets is fair

When the Mets signed Griffin Canning to a one-year $4.25 million deal, it was easy to argue that there may have been better options to consider. That's not really what is up for debate here, however, instead what needs to be considered is whether or not this is fair value for a depth starter.

Canning likely won't be one of the best five starters in the rotation, but with the Mets looking to keep Kodai Senga pitching just once a week a sixth starter will be a necessity more often than not. This is where Canning comes into play.

The Mets have other options. Paul Blackburn, Tylor Megill, and Jose Butto all exist on this roster. They each have reasons why they might not be the presumptive sixth starter.

Of the group, Megill is the only one with options left so starting him in AAA and bringing him up and down as needed makes the most sense. Butto was dominant as a reliever last season, posting a 2.00 in 36 innings, and the Mets still need bullpen help.

With those considerations in mind, the likely sixth starter comes down between Blackburn and Canning, with the loser serving as the long man out of the pen. Blackburn's never thrown more than 111.1 innings in a single season before, whereas Canning posted totals of 127 and 171.1 in 2023 and 2024, respectively.

On top of that, Canning was once ranked the Los Angeles Angels' number four prospect by FanGraphs giving him a pedigree that Blackburn can't match. It's been a long time since he was so highly regarded, but perhaps the Mets' pitching lab can unlock something there.

Lastly, one needs to consider what the cost is of a depth starter. If we use Blackburn as a reference, he's projected to get $6 million in arbitration according to Spotrac. In that case, Canning is cheaper by a significant margin and could possess untapped potential.

The counterargument is that the Mets didn't need to make another addition here, and the trio of Blackburn, Megill, and Butto was already sufficient. Still, given the role you can't say it is objectively bad, which helps the grade here.

Grade: C+