Max Scherzer is much different than the last former Cy Young winner the Mets signed in free agency

Max Scherzer joins the New York Mets with three Cy Young Awards to his name. In fact, dating back to 2013 when he won the award, Scherzer has finished fifth or higher in every season except for the shortened 2020 season.

It’s amazing how much Scherzer has accomplished over a long period of time. With no signs of slowing down, you can understand why Mets fans are thrilled to have in onboard for the coming year.

Scherzer is certainly not the only former Cy Young winner to join the Mets. Just two years ago, the Mets added a much different pitcher who once won the league’s best pitcher award.

The Mets have come a long way since signing former Cy Young winner Rick Porcello

Prior to the 2020 season, the Mets signed free agent pitcher Rick Porcello to a one-year deal. If you forgot about him, that’s okay. Porcello hasn’t pitched again since the 2020 season despite that being his age 31 campaign.

Things didn’t go well for him in his 12 Mets starts. A 1-7 record and 5.64 ERA tell you everything you need to know about how bad of a signing this was.

Prior to joining the Mets, Porcello had spent time with the Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox. He was actually a teammate of Scherzer’s in Detroit prior to leaving for Beantown.

Mostly average and best known for his ability to stay healthy, Porcello reached a different level in 2016 when he took home the American League Cy Young. He did it with a 22-4 record and 3.15 ERA. That same season but over in the National League, Scherzer was 20-7 with a 2.96 ERA and on his way to winning his second Cy Young Award and first with the Washington Nationals.

Scherzer is one of only a handful of big league pitchers to win three or more Cy Young Awards. The only two with links to the Mets are Tom Seaver and Pedro Martinez. Seaver won all three of his with New York. Martinez’s last came in 2000 when he was with the Boston Red Sox.

Together with Jacob deGrom, the Mets now have five Cy Young Awards on the roster. It ties what the franchise had during the time of Tom Glavine and Pedro Martinez. This situation is, however, much different.

Just last season, Scherzer finished third in the Cy Young vote. deGrom was a much more distant ninth but if he hadn’t missed half the season, he would have been a safe bet to be somewhere closer to the top.

The Porcello, deGrom duo with three combined Cy Young Awards felt one-sided. That’s because it was. Porcello had one awesome year to go with a couple of above-average and below-average campaigns.

The Scherzer and deGrom duo is like no other the Mets have had before. Each should be an early favorite to win the Cy Young. Maybe one can take the regular season award and the other can settle for World Series MVP.