5 pitchers who failed to turn into aces with the Mets

Over the team's history, the New York Mets have not had a shortage of good pitchers. The Mets have had many aces over the years, ranging from Tom Seaver to Dwight Gooden to Jacob deGrom. Along with the seven Cy Young awards that Mets pitchers have won, there have been many notable players not to win the award that still qualified as an ace.

But, there are also many pitchers the Mets have had that did not turn into an ace. Though they radiated potential, whether it was from having a good first few starts or coming over in a trade, they were never able to make it as an ace in New York. The expectations were high, but the results were not.

There are many Mets that can fall into this category, as the team has had many pitchers, dating back to the Seaver-era, who had potential to be an ace but never turned into one. Whether it was because of injuries, lack of stability or just not performing well, some pitchers did not turn into what the Mets, and their fans, hoped they could be.

Let's dive into a few of the pitchers who flashed this ace-potential, but during their time in New York and beyond were never able to match it. There were sky-high expectations for each as a Met, but none were able to live up to it. Let's start with a more recent one.

Why Steven Matz never turned into a Mets ace

In 2015, Steven Matz entered the big leagues with a bang: along with earning a win, he tallied three hits and four RBI. This was the start of a promising career for Matz, who ended the regular season with a 4-0 record and 2.27 ERA. Matz was also serviceable as the fourth pitcher for the Mets in their run to the World Series that year.

But, in the following years, Matz was not able to replicate what had fans calling him a possible ace. He dealt with many injuries during his time in New York that kept him off the field, and when he was on, he was never the same. His ERA in a season was never below 3.40 and he only had two years with a winning record in 2016 and 2019. Matz never became the top pitcher that the Mets were hoping for, and it ended with an 0-5 record and 9.68 ERA in 2020.

After leaving New York, Matz was decent for a year with the Braves, having a 14-7 record and 3.82 ERA, and is now in his second year with the St. Louis Cardinals. In all of these places, though, Matz has not been the top pitcher he was once believed to be.