Jacob deGrom, Mets Had 'Good Conversation' About Free Agency, GM Billy Eppler Says

New York Mets general manager Billy Eppler said Friday that he recently had a positive discussion with starting pitcher Jacob deGrom about free agency.

According to MLB.com's Anthony DiComo, Eppler said the talk occurred after the Mets were eliminated by the San Diego Padres in the National League Wild Card Round of the playoffs on Sunday, noting, "He knows how we feel. I know how he feels. It was a good conversation."

While deGrom could opt in for 2023 at a salary of $30.5 million, he is widely expected to opt out and hit free agency in pursuit of a long-term, big-money contract.

If deGrom opts out as expected, he will be one of several key Mets players to potentially hit the open market, along with pitchers Edwin Díaz, Carlos Carrasco, Taijuan Walker, Seth Lugo, Adam Ottavino and Trevor May, plus outfielders Brandon Nimmo and Tyler Naquin.

The 34-year-old deGrom is the biggest deal among them since he has been one of the most dominant starting pitchers in Major League Baseball when healthy over the past nine seasons.

In 209 career starts, deGrom is 82-57 with a 2.52 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 1,607 strikeouts over 1,326 innings. Those numbers have yielded four All-Star selections, two National League Cy Young Awards, one NL ERA title and the NL Rookie of the Year Award in 2014.

The past two seasons have been rocky for deGrom from an injury perspective, as he was limited to just 15 starts in 2021 and 11 starts this season.

In those 11 starts, deGrom went 5-4 with a 3.08 ERA, 0.74 WHIP and 102 strikeouts in 64.1 innings, proving that he remains unhittable at times when his health is right.

Also, deGrom started Game 2 of the Mets' playoff series against the Padres, earning the win after allowing five hits, two walks and two earned runs in six innings, while striking out eight.

Steve Cohen is among the richest MLB owners, and he has indicated that he is willing to spend big money in order to make the Mets World Series contenders.

That means money should be no object if he wants to retain deGrom, although he must consider whether committing high dollars and multiple years to deGrom would be a wise move given his age and recent injury history.

As of now, Max Scherzer and Chris Bassitt are the only members of the Mets' 2022 starting rotation guaranteed to be back in 2023, barring trades.

If deGrom is allowed to walk, it will leave a massive hole in New York's rotation, and it won't be easily filled since few starters have been as dominant as deGrom.

Losing deGrom would be bad optics for a team that blew a huge division lead and got upset in the opening round of the postseason, and that could play into the Mets wanting to keep deGrom and appease the fans.