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

Billy Eppler said he had a positive discussion with Jacob deGrom about free agency.

According to MLB.com's Anthony DiComo, Eppler said the talk happened after the Mets were eliminated by the San Diego Padres in the National League Wild Card Round of the playoffs. I'm aware of how he feels. It was a good discussion.

deGrom is expected to opt out and become a free agent in pursuit of a long-term, big money contract.

If deGrom opts out, he will be one of several Mets players who could hit the open market.

Since he has been one of the most dominant starting pitchers in baseball over the past nine seasons, the deGrom is the biggest deal among them.

Over the course of his career, deGrom has a 2.52ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 1,607 strikeouts. Four All-Star selections, two National League Cy Young Awards, one NLERA title, and the NL rookies of the year award have been achieved by those numbers.

In the past two seasons, deGrom has only been able to start 15 times and 11 times.

When his health is good, deGrom went 5-5 with a 3.08 ERA, 0.74 WHIP and 102 strikeouts in 11 starts, proving that he remains unhittable at times.

In the second game of the Mets' playoff series against the Padres, deGrom allowed five hits, two walks and two earned runs in 6 1/3 frames, while striking out eight, to earn the victory.

Steve Cohen is willing to spend a lot of money in order to make the Mets a World Series contender.

If he wants to retain deGrom, money should not be a problem, but he must consider whether committing high dollars and multiple years to deGrom would be a good idea.

Max Scherzer and Chris Bassitt are the only two members of the Mets' starting rotation in 2022.

If deGrom is allowed to walk, it will leave a huge hole in New York's rotation and it won't be easy to fill.

Losing deGrom would be bad for the Mets because they blew a huge division lead and were upset in the first round of the playoffs.