Chris Bassitt has the perfect NSFW response to a question about his contract

Chris Bassitt could have whined. He could have cried. He could have simply dodged the question. Instead, the newest New York Mets starting pitcher embraced one of his first introductions to the fans.

You may have seen Bassitt and the Mets were unable to come to terms on a contract for this season. Because of this, the two sides could end up in arbitration next month where he’ll either get the $9 million he filed for or the $8.3 million the Mets filed against him.

It’s an ugly yet necessary side of the business of baseball. When asked about it, Bassitt had a not-so-safe-for-work yet perfect response.

Mets pitcher Chris Bassitt chose the only right answer he could

There are a million ways Bassitt could have had this answer go awry. Instead, he chose a direct approach and gave the fans what they wanted to hear.

A lot of fans were drained from the MLB lockout and all of the financial arguing between the two sides. Add in that tax day is coming up and you may owe Uncle Sam, now is not the best time for a professional athlete to get feisty over $700K when he is already guaranteed to make millions.

There’s probably a reason why the Mets chose Bassitt over some of the other starting pitchers available out there. The cost surely played a major factor. The person seemed to matter, too. Everything has spoken glowingly of him since he joined the Mets. Those who knew him well told us we’d like him. In what could have been a contentious moment with reporters, Bassitt knocked one out of the park.

The notoriously tough New York media doesn’t seem to be a match for Bassitt whose calm and honest demeanor managed to tackle this first one well. It was a great response because it shows he’s not some money-hungry athlete about to pitch well this year just to get a good contract next season. He defused the question easily and by working blue, showed off a little bit of attitude not many of us probably knew was there.

Bassitt had been quietly successful with the Oakland Athletics. Lost behind some more notable pitchers, the change of scenery will put him into a bigger spotlight but not at the forefront of it. He still has Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer ahead of him. However, he seems like he’ll fit right in with those two professionals.