Jacob deGrom changed agents during this off-season, suggesting that he is preparing for another possible contract negotiation.
The right-handed star was chosen and developed by Mets and won two Cy Young awards with them, so it’s hard to imagine him ending his career anywhere other than Queens. And there is also a “cool” factor in retiring as a Met for deGrom, who was asked on Friday about whether to play the rest of his career for the team.
DeGrom’s five-year contract with the club for $ 137.5 million includes the option for a player not to participate after the 2022 season.
“I definitely enjoyed my time here and signed for a long term here,” said deGrom at spring training in Port St. Lucie, Florida. “I really didn’t think much about the opt-out. The goal is to go out there and act and then, when the time comes, make that decision.
“One thing that I think is really cool is when someone spends their entire career with a team. You don’t see that happening a lot anymore, so it’s definitely something I thought about and I think we only have to see it when the time comes. “
DeGrom, 32, will earn $ 35.5 million in each of the next two seasons. But a new bar has been defined by Trevor Bauer, who for the next two seasons will receive $ 40 million and $ 45 million, respectively, from the Dodgers. Bauer, who won last year’s NL Cy Young award with the Reds, was the first starting pitcher in the free-agent market.
Mets’ offer to Bauer was in the same neighborhood, but deGrom said he did not mind the prospect of becoming the second-largest in salary on rotation.
“[Bauer] waited until the free agency and that’s what happens, ”said deGrom. “I signed an agreement before the free agency. This would be a discussion to have with my agency, but I am happy to be here. I signed the agreement and didn’t really look back. “
Previously represented by CAA, deGrom in this off-season hired the VC Sports group as its new agents. Former CAA DeGrom agent Brodie Van Wagenen has spent the past two seasons as general manager of Mets. Jeff Berry has been deGrom’s agent for the past two years.
“I enjoyed the time I spent with CAA, but I felt it was time to move and sit with those guys at my new agency,” said deGrom. “I really liked what they had to say and I felt it was a change that I needed to make.”
If deGrom doesn’t give up, his contract with Mets will run until 2023, with a club option for the following season. David Wright retired as Met after playing his entire career in the organization, and de Grom said it had an impact on him.
“Seeing how much, how well he was treated by Mets fans and being a Met for the rest of his life was definitely cool and special,” said deGrom. “Being there for the last time he went on the pitch was really cool. It definitely weighs on your mind, but it is a decision that will be made when the time comes. “
After losing Bauer, the Mets reached an agreement on Friday with free agent Taijuan Walker. That leaves Mets with a spin behind deGrom that includes Carlos Carrasco, Marcus Stroman and David Peterson or Joey Lucchesi, as well as Walker.
But it is also not the kind of dream rotation that the Mets would have had it won over Bauer. Last year, deGrom finished third in the Cy Young race (behind Bauer and Yu Darvish) after making it 4-2 with an ERA of 2.38 and WHIP 0.956.
“Honestly, I didn’t follow [the Bauer talk] too much, ”said deGrom. “Anyone we could add to help would definitely be a positive.
“I don’t think there’s ever been a full season where you go through a full season with five pitchers, so any pitch and pitch of pitch like that would definitely have been an advantage, but he decided to go to LA and that was his choice, and this is part of the free will process. He would definitely have helped here, but we have who we have and I think we have a good starting rotation. “