The New York Mets know they need to bolster their starting rotation ahead of next season.
A lack of quality starting options was the biggest reason the Mets missed the postseason this year even with the three rookies trying to save the season. Their efforts didn’t go unnoticed, but they weren’t enough to carry the team into a wild-card spot.
Now, the Mets know what they have to do. It will require multiple starting pitcher additions to get the rotation to where it needs to be. Danny Abirano believes one of them could be San Diego Padres starter Dylan Cease, who will be a free agent.
“Cease shouldn’t be the Mets’ main starting pitching acquisition this offseason — that one should come via trade,” Abriano wrote for SNY. “But as a finishing piece of sorts for the starting rotation, Cease would bring the floor of a solid innings-eater and the upside of a Cy Young candidate. And signing Cease would be especially shrewd if it only takes a three-year deal or so.”
Abriano’s hint at the main acquisition coming via trade is about Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal. While the Mets would love to acquire him, two things need to happen first: The Tigers must be willing to trade him, and the Mets have to offer a better package than everyone else.
As for Cease, he would be a great addition to the rotation as he would provide someone who could go out and pitch five or six innings every five days. That’s one of the biggest needs for the Mets’ rotation, and Cease would provide that. If they could get him up to All-Star caliber, then he would make New York better than expected.
However, it seems extremely unlikely he will sign for just three years. Jim Bowden recently predicted him to sign a six-year deal in free agency; Spotrac shows the same with the dollar figures within $3 million of each other.
The Mets would be thrilled if they managed to add Cease on a three-year deal. They would also be thrilled to bring back Pete Alonso at the same price they paid for him this year, but neither is likely to happen.
If the Mets want Cease, they’ll have to sign him to a long-term deal.
