DON’T PANIC! But deGrom to opt out after this season
PORT ST. LUCIE — Jacob deGrom will become a free agent after the 2022 season. The Mets ace said he will exercise his opt-out once he completes his ninth year in the big leagues.
DeGrom signed a team-friendly five-year, $137.5 million contract in 2019 that included an opt-out after the 2022 season. And after much speculation, the two-time Cy Young winner announced on Monday at spring training that he will indeed trigger that optout, and he will wait until after the season to discuss a new contract with owner Steve Cohen and the Mets.
“I won’t talk any more on this, but that’s the business side of baseball,” deGrom said in a press conference. “But for me, I don’t want that to be any distraction. I’m excited about this team, love being a Met, I think it would be really cool to be one my entire career. But the plan is to exercise that option and be in constant contact in the offseason with the Mets and Steve Cohen and the front office.”
On Sunday, Cohen sounded confident that the Mets would keep the ace in Queens. “Jake will do what he does,” Cohen said. “We love Jake and we’ll figure it out at some point.” First, though, is an important season for deGrom in which he will try to stay healthy for a full season. The right-hander indicated that the elbow inflammation that kept him out for the entire second half of 2021 is now completely healed.
DeGrom — who will make his fourth Opening Day start for the Mets on April 7 against the Nats — threw his first bullpen of spring training on Monday, under the close supervision of pitching coach Jeremy Hefner. The ace said he went through his normal offseason routine, including throwing 5-6 bullpens which felt “really good.” He has been told his UCL is “perfectly fine,” and he’s confident he can get back to making 30-plus starts and pitching more than 200 innings.
“I feel really good,” deGrom said. “I’ve been throwing prior to coming down here, preparing for being told when to show up. It felt good.
Treated it like a normal offseason..”
TAIJUAN, MARTE INJURY FLAGS
Taijuan Walker underwent right knee surgery, a debridement procedure, in mid January. Walker is a few steps behind the other starters — he is in a running progression before being cleared for full-game activity. The Mets are still hopeful Walker will be a part of their Opening Week rotation.
Starling Marte is dealing with left oblique soreness. The new Mets centerfielder went for X-rays and other tests, which did not reveal any damage, per Showalter. Marte did not participate in Monday’s workouts out of caution, and the Mets do not appear overly concerned about the oblique soreness.
“With that type of area, it always puts a flag up initially,” Showalter said of Marte. “But so far so good.”
CANO ADDRESSES CLUBHOUSE
Robinson Cano addressed the Mets clubhouse on Monday regarding his second-career PED suspension.
Showalter said his tone could be described as apologetic, and that players were receptive to what he had to say. Cano didn’t explain why he took PEDs again, but that he was grateful to be given the opportunity to be back with the team. The second baseman is scheduled to speak to the media on Wednesday.
BASSITT’S NEW DIGS
New Mets pitcher Chris Bassitt, who figures to slide into the rotation as the No. 3 starter behind deGrom and Scherzer, is enjoying the winnow atmosphere around spring training.
“We only have one goal, and that’s to win it all,” he said.
Bassitt made it clear he’s thankful for the change of scenery.
“Whatever we want, we’re getting,” Bassitt said of having Cohen as the team owner. “He wants to win. We all want to win. So we all have a common goal from literally the very top to the bottom. I think we definitely have an advantage over a lot of the league.”