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Mets have ready-made Jacob deGrom replacement to sign

By Rylie Smith

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 08: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Jacob deGrom #48 of the New York Mets in action against the San Diego Padres during game two of the NL Wild Card Series at Citi Field on October 08, 2022 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. The Mets defeated the Padres 7-3. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - OCTOBER 08: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Jacob deGrom #48 of the New York Mets in action against the San Diego Padres during game two of the NL Wild Card Series at Citi Field on October 08, 2022 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. The Mets defeated the Padres 7-3. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /
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The New York Mets are in a tough spot with Jacob deGrom officially hitting free agency, and they are predicted to be ready to sign someone in his place.

The New York Mets may be losing ace Jacob deGrom to free agency, and while it would be wise for them to invest in him and they would probably like to, he could choose to sign elsewhere. Experts predict that they may be ready to sign Carlos Rodon as a backup plan if things don’t work out.

According to multiple MLB experts interviewed by ESPN, the Mets seem likely to offer Rodon $150 million over five years.

It’s unclear whether or not deGrom will be offered more to stay or if the Mets will let him walk, but he’s expressed his intention to opt out of his contract since the spring and further shared that he loves being a Met and thinks it would be ‘really cool’ to spend his entire career with them, but opting out comes from a place of business.

He’s going to be worth a lot on the market. Many have predicted he’ll be worth around $40 million AAV, and it all comes down to whether or not the Mets are willing to spend so much to keep him.

If not, Rodon won’t be a perfect replacement, but he’ll certainly be a good one.

The Mets would hurt without Jacob deGrom, but Carlos Rodon may be a decent replacement

deGrom is on a completely different level of talent that not many can replace. If New York doesn’t want to dish out the money to keep him, it’s unlikely they’d dish out the money on another star to that level, such as Justin Verlander. Rodon, however, may be worth a little bit less and still bring talent to the rotation.

Rodon has performed well over the past two seasons, producing an ERA of 2.63, batting average against of 0.196 and WHIP of 1.00. However, his prior seasons weren’t quite as good, suggesting this could be a fluke of good luck.

If he can perform up to the standards he did over the past two seasons, he’d be perfect for the Mets. If he performs up to the standards of the rest of his career, he still wouldn’t be a bad option as a replacement but also wouldn’t be seamless.

Regardless, he’s one of the best cheaper options on the market for the Mets, and he’s a good backup if they do lose deGrom.

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