The New York Mets have agreed to terms with free-agent southpaw José Quintana on a two-year contract worth $26 million, according to The Athletic. Quintana is the second veteran addition the Mets have made to their rotation this week, joining Justin Verlander.
While it's fair to write that Quintana is the least impactful of the two, he's coming off a career resurgence in 2022. He started 32 times split between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the St. Louis Cardinals, amassing a 2.93 ERA (137 ERA+) and a 2.91 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He ranked No. 39 on CBS Sports' top-50 free agent rankings. Here's what we wrote:
Quintana's one weird trick for resuscitating his career as a 33-year-old? Surrendering four fewer home runs than he did in 2021 despite throwing 102 additional innings. His game is and has always been based on contact management. He doesn't have loud stuff, but he locates what he has well enough to get by. And get by he has. Quintana has been a competent starter for roughly a decade now, save for the 73 combined innings he threw during the 2020-21 seasons. Because crafty left-handers are essentially interdimensional beings, unbound or ungoverned by the rules of linear time, Quintana should be a decent bet to have at least one more solid year.
This has already been a busy winter for the Mets' rotation. Verlander and Quintana help offset the loss of Jacob deGrom (Texas Rangers) and Taijuan Walker (Philadelphia Phillies). After all that moving and shaking, here's what the Mets' projected rotation looks like at the moment:
- Max Scherzer
- Justin Verlander
- José Quintana
- Carlos Carrasco
- Tylor Megill/David Peterson
The Mets appear to be continuing their pursuit of another veteran starter, too, as the New York Post reports they're still interested in NPB star Kodai Senga. Chris Bassitt remains on the open market, and the Mets have also been linked to fellow free agent Carlos Rodón.
