ESPN 98.1 FM – 850 AM WRUF ESPN 98.1 FM – 850 AM WRUF
Just before opening day, the New York Mets have signed ace pitcher Jacob deGrom to a five-year, $137.5 million contract extension. According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the deal gives deGrom $27.5 million per year.
The 30-year-old reigning Cy Young winner was supposed to make $17 million this season. He also was under team control until 2020. This extension replaces the current deal and includes an opt-out after 2022, as well as a club option for 2024. The deal has a full no-trade clause.
deGrom is set to receive a $7 million salary this season, $23 million in 2020, $33.5 million in 2021 and 2022 and $30.5 million in 2023. There is a $32.5 million option for 2024. That’s an average annual value of $27.5 million a season, which is the eighth largest in MLB history.
https://twitter.com/Mets/status/1110659086528458752
deGrom’s Dominance
To many baseball fans, deGrom is arguably one of the best pitchers in the MLB right now. He led the majors with a 1.70 ERA in 217 innings last season, the fifth-lowest ERA by a pitcher in a single season since the mound was lowered in 1969. Although he went 10-9, he had 269 strikeouts in 32 starts.
But he had little support around him, and the Mets finished the year at 77-85. He still was the runaway winner in the NL Cy Young Award – the pitcher with the fewest wins to ever receive the honor.
So Brodie Van Wagenen, the newest general manager for the Mets, had plenty of incentive to make sure this deal happened. He says he felt little pressure in making sure the agreement went through.
Now that the Mets officially locked in deGrom, he’ll re-join with pitcher Noah Syndergaard. He posted an ERA of 3.03 in 2018 and had just four losses on the season. He took to Twitter to share his excitement about deGrom’s extension.
https://twitter.com/Noahsyndergaard/status/1110558131048730631
The Mets open up the season against the Washington Nationals on Thursday. deGrom will take to the mound and face Cy Young Award runner-up Max Scherzer.
