SAN DIEGO — Move over, Gerrit Cole.
The Mets may have just answered one of their glaring question marks by landing a fifth starter.
The Mets are close to finalizing a one-year, $3 million deal with incentives for free agent right-handed starter Michael Wacha, a source with knowledge of the situation confirmed to the Daily News. The deal is pending a physical and has not yet been made official by the team, so Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen was limited in his explanation of the signing.
“Last week we stated, as we showed up here, starting pitching depth is a priority for us,” Van Wagenen said. “It continues to be. We like Michael Wacha a lot … he fits the category of depth starting pitching that we think has high upside.”
Wacha posted a 4.76 ERA across 24 starts for the Cardinals in 2019 before sustaining a right shoulder strain, a pesky injury that has troubled the righty since 2014, and was forced to miss St. Louis’ postseason run. The Mets hope working with new pitching coach Jeremy Heffner will help Wacha return to form — when he earned an All-Star nod in 2015 and was named the 2013 National League NLCS MVP.
The 28-year-old is a CAA client and former teammate of manager Carlos Beltran. They played for the Cardinals together in 2013 during Wacha’s rookie season. Van Wagenen, the prior point man at CAA, has made it clear he feels comfortable tapping into his large network of former clients. The GM’s CAA connections to Jacob deGrom, Robinson Cano and Jed Lowrie are noteworthy.
Wacha’s former Cardinals skipper Mike Shildt, the 2019 NL Manager of the Year, had nothing but good things to say about the righty from Iowa City. Shildt managed Wacha since July, 2018 when he took over as the interim skipper for Mike Matheny. He served as Matheny’s bench coach to start the 2018 season.
“Michael Wacha is an absolute gladiator,” Shildt said. “He is that quiet guy that just gets it done.
“I’m a big believer in the money you get, but your value beyond what you’re doing to help grow others around you in the clubhouse is important, and Michael Wacha does that in spades. He does it in a professional setting. He’s a manager’s dream. The one thing, because he’s a free agent, somebody is going to get a steal with this guy. This guy is a good pitcher,” he said.
Wacha figures to slide into the backend of the Mets’ 2020 rotation — a pitching corps that now looks clearer — behind Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Marcus Stroman and Steven Matz. Given Wacha’s recent injury history and susceptibility to aches and pains in his right shoulder, it would still be in the Mets’ best interests to shore up some pitching depth.
The 6-foot-6, 215-pounder was much more effective in the beginning of his seven-year big league career, when he posted a 3.21 ERA in his first three Major League seasons. Wacha arrived in St. Louis looking like a future front-line starter. But since 2016, he’s recorded a 4.29 ERA over four years.
“He’s got championship makeup,” Van Wagenen said. “We can talk more specifically when we reach the finish line on Wacha. This is a guy that’s pitched in postseason games. This is a guy that has been in an All-Star Game. There are other pitchers out there that we need to keep an eye on, too. But Michael Wacha fits a lot of categories we’re seeking.”
The acquisition takes away the broadcasted possibility of Seth Lugo or Robert Gsellman landing a permanent spot in the five-man rotation for 2020. Though both relief pitchers were told to implement starting pitcher training in their offseason routines this winter and could be used as added depth.
“If we were to add a starting pitcher, then it creates the ability for us to move Lugo and/or Gsellman into the bullpen if the rotation had coverage at the end of camp,” Van Wagenen said.