Why Mets Should Strongly Consider Carlos Rodón amid Latest Jacob deGrom, MLB Rumors

As the 2022 MLB offseason continues to unfold, the New York Mets are pondering their next move at pitcher.

New York reached a new five-year deal with reliever Edwin Díaz just before the start of free agency. However, with Chris Bassitt, Jacob deGrom and Taijuan Walker reaching free agency, New York is looking to fill out its starting rotation.

According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Mets are eying top free agents like deGrom, Justin Verlander and Carlos Rodón to pair with Max Scherzer at the top of the rotation:

While deGrom appears to be the Met's "focus," according to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal, New York has turned its attention to Rodón this week. Sherman reported that New York scheduled a virtual meeting with the 29-year-old on Tuesday.

Kicking the tires on Rodón is completely logical, even if the Mets believe they can bring back deGrom. Rodón is on the under side of 30, is coming off of back-to-back All-Star campaigns and would potentially bring more long-term value to the Mets than either deGrom or Verlander.

Verlander, who will turn 40 in February, is still at the top of his game, but he may only make sense on a one- or perhaps two-year deal. The Mets are reportedly considering a three-year deal with deGrom, which is more than what other teams would offer.

According to SNY's Andy Martino, other teams view deGrom as a significant risk. The MLB insider recently said the following on Baseball Night in New York:

"I think this is breaking in the Mets’ favor a little bit. We have not seen teams step up at the level the Mets are willing to be. Which we’ve said before, is clearly three years. I don’t think the Mets would go four. But I think other teams, rightly, view deGrom as a big risk. He’s not Corey Kluber of a couple of years ago, but other teams are sort of seeing him in that category, where you take a flier on him."

The concern is legitimate, as deGrom has missed time because of injury in each of the past two seasons.

This is another reason why it makes sense to strongly consider the younger and (recently) healthier Rodón. While deGrom is capable of pitching at a high level when healthy, he can't help the Mets if he's on the disabled list.

And taking a swing a Rodón now is logical because other teams are interested. According to Rosenthal, the Texas Rangers are "more confident" about landing Rodón than either deGrom or Verlander.

The Mets owe it to themselves to see if Rodón can be a fit—on the field and financially—while the option of signing him is still on the proverbial table. If he isn't or if New York can't land him, the Mets can always turn their attention back to deGrom.

This is where teams' concerns can benefit New York. It feels unlikely that another franchise will snap up deGrom before pitchers like Rodón and Verlander are off the market. This gives the Mets time to evaluate their options before committing to a quality player with legitimate durability concerns.

This past season, Rodón won 14 games for the San Francisco Giants while pitching 178 innings. His 2.88 ERA was better than deGrom's (3.08), and his workload was significantly higher—deGrom pitched just 64.1 innings.

None of this means that deGrom won't be back, that New York won't make a run at Verlander or that it won't pivot to another pitcher. However, Rodón is a terrific starter to target for the long term, and the Mets would be doing themselves a disservice by not checking in.

Franchise owner Steve Cohen and GM Billy Eppler clearly aren't afraid to spend to build a contender. If they're going to spend big to keep a second star in the rotation, though, it only makes sense to consider all options before making a move.