The New York Mets and right-handed pitcher Griffin Canning reached an agreement on a one-year contract worth $4.25 million, league sources told The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal on Wednesday. The deal, pending a physical, includes $1 million in potential bonuses.
On Oct. 31, the Atlanta Braves acquired Canning in a trade with the Los Angeles Angels for outfielder Jorge Soler. A few weeks later, the Braves non-tendered Canning, making him a free agent. On Dec. 3, The Athletic mentioned Canning as a name to keep in mind, ahead of an expected meeting with the Mets.
Over five seasons, Canning owns a 4.78 career ERA. In 2024, Canning, 28, appeared in 32 games, including 31 starts. In 171 2/3 innings, he had a 5.19 ERA/5.26 FIP with a 1.39 WHIP and 130 strikeouts.
It’s unclear precisely how the Mets view Canning. But on the surface, he profiles as a depth option along with the likes of Paul Blackburn, Tylor Megill and others. Generally speaking, under president of baseball operations David Stearns, the club prefers to carry eight to 10 starting pitching options at the top levels of the organization.
So far this offseason, the Mets have signed Clay Holmes and Frankie Montas to a starting rotation that is also set to return Kodai Senga and David Peterson.
The Mets plan to utilize a six-man rotation as their default as long as the schedule follows a conventional week. So, for example, on weeks with two days off, the Mets probably wouldn’t stick with a six-man rotation.
Even after adding Canning, it is conceivable that the Mets would still look to re-sign Sean Manaea or sign a different free-agent starter like Walker Buehler or someone similar — or make a trade.
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