The Mets are getting a third left-handed option for their rotation this season.
In an effort to create rotational depth, the club acquired Joey Lucchesi from the Padres on Monday as part of a deal with three teams, including the Pirates. In trade, the Mets sent minor leaguer Endy Rodriguez to Pittsburgh. The Padres, meanwhile, took over pitcher Joe Musgrove from the Pirates for four potential customers.
Lucchesi, 27, played in just three games for the Padres last season. The year before, he went 10-10 with a 4.18 ERA and 1,222 WHIP in 30 starts for the team.
He spent most of last season at the Padres’ alternate training site, as the team looked to younger pitchers. In his three appearances last season, Lucchesi pitched to a 7.94 ERA.
The move gives the Mets one more potential left-wing starter, joining David Peterson and Steven Matz for their rebuilt rotation. Lucchesi’s arrival will make it easier for the Mets to get Seth Lugo back to the bullpen.
As it stands, the Mets have Jacob deGrom, Carlos Carrasco, Marcus Stroman, Peterson, Matz, Lucchesi and Lugo as rotation options to start the season. The Mets are also hopeful that Noah Syndergaard will return from Tommy John’s surgical rehab in June.
Lucchesi still has minor league options, so even if he didn’t crack the Mets roster in spring practice, he would provide depth at Triple-A Syracuse. He is only eligible for arbitration until the next low season.
Lucchesi was expendable for the Padres due to their wild off-season, including the additions of Yu Darvish and Blake Snell to their rotation, alongside Musgrove.
But the Mets, under new owner Steve Cohen, team chairman Sandy Alderson and general manager Jared Porter, have rebuilt their own rotation.
It started with Stroman, who accepted the club’s $ 18.9 million qualifying offer for this season and continued with the addition of Carrasco, who arrived in the deal that brought Francisco Lindor from Cleveland.
Matz is the joker in the rotation mix. The lefthanded pitched to a 9.68 ERA last season and was relegated to the bullpen, but the Mets offered him an off-season contract and the sides negotiated a one-year deal of $ 5.25 million.
While Lugo has expressed his preference to pitch as a starter – he was pushed into that role last season due to necessity – his best work came from the bullpen, where he was one of the best relievers in the Netherlands in 2018 and ’19.
Still on the hunt for possible launch rotational depth, the Mets plan to explore a showcase in Miami on Tuesday with veteran startups Julio Tehran and Anibal Sanchez.
The big off-season for the Mets also included the signing of catcher James McCann for a four-year deal worth $ 40.6 million and reliever Trevor May for a two-year deal worth $ 15.5 million.
But the Mets may not be ready, as they continue to hunt to sign George Springer, the best free-agent outfielder on the market, and Brad Hand, a quality left-handed reliever. The Blue Jays are the only other known suitor for Springer, looking to install the Mets as their central fielder, allowing Brandon Nimmo to play left. Hand, who has been linked to several teams, became a free agent after Cleveland, in payroll mode, declined his 2021 option.