Former NY Mets GM predicts Sean Manaea’s contract and what if he stays or goes

The Luis Severino contract had a lot of baseball fans wondering why they ever spent an ounce of energy swinging a bat in little league. If only we were pressured into pitching instead of hitting. Maybe we would’ve gotten the $67 million awarded to the now-former New York Mets pitcher.

On the topic of exes, former Mets GM Zack Scott voiced his thoughts on the Severino signing in relation to another important free agent, Sean Manaea. Still a candidate to return to the Mets, Scott made his best guess as to what Manaea will get paid and predicted whether he’d come back to Flushing?

The verdict? A four-year deal worth $80+ million plus a brand new uniform.

Former Mets GM Zack Scott might be underselling Sean Manaea’s contract value, furthering the likelihood he leaves

What does Manaea want more than anything? Years? Money? Power?

Manaea can choose to sign for a shorter deal and have a high AAV or seek a fourth year and bring his total earnings up in the $80+ million range suggested by Scott. A four-year deal worth $80 million comes out to less than what the Athletics will be paying Severino per season. Even if the total value of the deal is more, one would guess a four year deal would be closer to $100 million than $80 million.

The money doesn’t matter much to Mets fans if the second part of this prediction is correct. Leave New York? But you just got here! Manaea remains a great match to rejoin the Mets for 2025 and beyond. Because of his qualifying offer and the same tag placed on a few other potential top of the rotation targets, the Mets benefit far more from bringing him back than pivoting elsewhere. There aren’t too many intriguing starting pitchers in free agency without the QO penalties attached to them. Manaea, because he was one of theirs last year, wouldn’t have any consequences to sign.

The price tag on starting pitchers is getting to a point where we can reasonably assume David Stearns will look elsewhere. A trade, perhaps, is the best way to navigate around an unattractive long-term deal where the second half of the contract is going to be a drag on the payroll. Two things Stearns has avoided since joining the Mets is signing anyone to a long-term deal and trading away a prospect of any significance. Something has to give for the Mets to have sustainable success. It’s not for a lack of trying on the money side of things. Yoshinobu Yamamoto turned down the Mets. The ongoing and nearing its conclusion Juan Soto sweepstakes is another opportunity for Steve Cohen to empty his wallet.

It would be a shame if the Mets lost Manaea. At some point, they do need to draw the line. Scott thinks his projected market will be too rich to retain. If not him, who?