Luis Severino, fresh off a rebound season in which he demonstrated he can still provide upside and stability, has agreed to a three-year, $67 million contract with the Athletics, league sources confirmed to The Athletic.
Severino, who turns 31 in February, landed the multiyear deal he coveted after succeeding in a prove-it year and then turning down a qualifying offer from the New York Mets. Severino entered this offseason as the No. 23 player on The Athletic’s Free Agent Big Board, and the 11th-best available starting pitcher. The Athletic’s Tim Britton projected Severino would receive a three-year, $50 million deal.
With the Mets, Severino changed his pitching style. He utilized a sinker for soft contact and early outs. It worked. Severino made 31 regular-season starts and threw 182 innings. He had previously pitched just 209 1/3 innings over his previous five seasons combined because of injuries. The Mets signed him to a one-year deal in November 2023, believing he could at least be a serviceable backend option. He was more than that. Severino was a reliable mid-rotation starter for New York, consistently keeping the Mets in games and taking big starts in the postseason.
As a major leaguer, Severino has only played for New York teams. Before joining the Mets, Severino played eight seasons with the New York Yankees. Injuries stalled a promising career. He had Tommy John surgery in 2020 and missed a couple of months in 2022 because of a lat strain. In 2023, an oblique injury ended his year in September. With the Yankees, Severino had a 3.79 ERA and 1.185 WHIP through 727 1/3 innings pitched with 788 strikeouts.
Toward the end of last season, Severino said he believed he could increase his strikeout rate once again. He ended up throwing his sinker more than ever with the Mets. Severino’s whiff rate sat at just 22 percent, but he did a good job of avoiding hard contact and barrels while still hitting 96 mph with his four-seam fastball.
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