The New York Mets have reportedly landed one of the most sought after free agent pitchers on the market.
SNY‘s Andy Martino intially reported that the Mets were “close” to a deal with Max Scherzer, adding the three-time Cy Young Award winner to a rotation that already includes two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom.
MLB Network‘s Jon Heyman reported the Mets were “finalizing” a three-year,130 million deal with Scherzer minutes later.
The Mets have already been busy this offseason, having agreed to deals with center fielder Starling Marte, infielder Eduardo Escobar and outfielder Mark Canha, which combined to a total of $124.5 million prior to the reported agreement with Scherzer, ESPN reports.
Scherzer, 36, an eight-time all-star and World Series champion in 2019, was one of MLB’s most dominant starters of the 2010s and has found continued success in the 2020s, which included recording a 15-4 record and 2.46 ERA in 179 1/3 innings in 2021, finishing third in the National League Cy Young Award voting, the eighth time he’s finishing within the top five during the past nine seasons.
Scherzer has posted a 2.82 ERA and averaged 15 wins in 192 innings per season dating back to 2013, which included the pandemic-shortened 60-game MLB season in 2020.