SNY’s Andy Martino writes that righty ace Jacob deGrom’s openness to returning to the Mets is growing, with a friend of the pitcher saying that although he would’ve said the odds of deGrom returning to Queens were “zero” had he been asked during Spring Training, he would now say they are “50/50”.
deGrom is expected to opt-out of the remainder of his contract, joining teammates Brandon Nimmo, Chris Bassitt, Edwin Diaz, and Taijuan Walker as key players filing for free agency this offseason. While this leaves the Mets with plenty of holes to fill this offseason, retaining deGrom is sure to be a top priority. The two time Cy Young award winner has posted some of the best numbers in baseball over the past few years, with a 2.05 ERA and 2.14 FIP in 645 1/3 innings since the start of the 2018 season. As that low inning total implies, however, deGrom has struggled to stay on the field in recent years, making just 26 starts across the 2021 and 2022 seasons. Those health struggles have done little to damage his reputation as the best pitcher in baseball, however, and he should find a strong market for this services this offseason in spite of them.
With at least 3 starting pitchers set to hit the market this offseason, and the possibility of a fourth if the team declines Carlos Carrasco’s club option, re-signing deGrom to accompany Max Scherzer atop the rotation would seem like a no-brainer for the Mets. That hasn’t stopped both sides from considering other options, however, and Martino notes that the Mets have considered making runs at signing Justin Verlander or even a trade for Shohei Ohtani to replace their ace. While the sides clearly aren’t entirely committed to each other at this moment, the fit between the two is undeniable, and Martino reports that Scherzer has privately made his desire for deGrom to remain with the team clear. As for deGrom, Martino reports that he is “enjoying the vibe around the Mets more than ever” this season.
Elsewhere in the National League…
- Danielle Allentuck of the Denver Gazette took a look at Colorado’s pending free agents, and noted that the Rockies have particular interest in bringing righty reliever Carlos Estevez back into the fold next season. Estevez pitched to a 3.47 ERA and a 4.08 FIP in 57 innings for Colorado this season, good for an ERA+ of 135. With pitchers who can find success at Coors Field hard to come by and a need for veteran leadership in a mostly young, inexperienced bullpen, a reunion with Estevez would make a lot of sense for Colorado.
- MLB.com’s Jessica Camerato reports that righty reliever Steve Cishek is contemplating retirement. Cishek just completed his age 36 season, where he posted a 4.21 ERA in 66 1/3 innings for the Nationals. While his 2022 season was largely unimpressive, Cishek has posted a 2.98 ERA over the course of a career spanning 13 seasons and eight organizations. A player with his track record would surely be able to find a job somewhere, though it’s possible he may need to settle for a minor-league deal should he decide to continue his playing career.
LOLMETS doing LOLMETS things will be funny to watch, as always. I hope they sign deGrom to a $50 million AAV deal.
10 teams fans already say he’s singing with them.
Probably because the Mets just don’t have the money.
deGrom’s agent will just use the Pirates, A’s, Reds, and Rays to drive the price up.
Kinda depends on what he wants. His age and injury history make his contract range entirely unpredictable. If I were him, I would want a three-year deal with opt outs after each season. If I’m healthy next year, I can opt out and get another 2-3 year deal with an event higher AAV.
Any team that has the unlikely gall to go to four guaranteed years probably holds a total dollars advantage over the competition.
In all honesty, you’re only signing him if you legitimately believe you’re in a World Series window and can put him at the front of your rotation in the playoffs. If you’re paying him in the hopes he makes 25+ starts to push you into contention, you may be disappointed given his injury history.
Opt outs after each year? A team would be insane to do that. Basically if he’s good he’s one done, if he’s hurt or ineffective you’re on the hook for tons of money. Opt outs later in the contract sure. But if it’s gonna be a one year deal if he’s good then just make it a one year deal.
If I were deGrom, that’s what I would want. Twins just did it with Correa, Dodgers did it with Correa, Mets did it with Cespedes.
If you’re the Best pitcher in baseball when healthy you can command that sort of thing. Guarantee he doesn’t take just a straight one year deal.
Yea I see it from the players point if view, I just think it’s crazy for the other side. But I guess it happens. It just too lop-sided for me. You win , you get a one year deal at cost; you lose, you’re on the hook for a mega deal for a disappointing player. Doesn’t make sense.
Crazy as it may seem, from the Mets point of view they could agree to the opt outs and keep it at 3 years. With that, DeGrom would be pitching his best for an opt out each year. Keep it at 3 years and no more than that so if he falters, the hit isn’t too bad on the length.
The same fans that make players feel like Gods. When you perform poorly, you’ll hear about it. When performing like a $43M per year player and winning the big game, you will be celebrated like no other. The canyon of heroes can never be topped.
Mets just don’t have the money? They have Stevie Cohen’s beautiful money.
I think tonight’s game tells the tale. deGrom will be a Mets legend returning on a huge contract or a fantastic pitcher whose Mets career endee in flames.
I don’t know if that’s entirely true because pitching well tonight doesn’t guarantee they win the series. If he goes 7 scoreless and they still lose or if he wins his game and then they lose tomorrow, he’s not going to be a “legend”. It’s going to take a bigger playoff run to get there.
I do agree though that if he melted down tonight and then opted out it would be a weird look for them to bring him back.
Yes. It’s not all about deGrom’s performance, the end result matters. But his definitive Mets legacy is on the line IMO. Fans turned on Scherzer quick. They’ll do the same to deGrom if he throws a stinker.
Met fans booing Scherzer last night was about as low class as a fan base can get.
rondon;
t’s New York……
Why anyone would want to play there if they have a choice is beyond me.
Those are not the real fans sadly enough they are the ones that pop out when things are going good. Philly fans i heard are the worst though.
Booing a guy who is paid 43 Million Missed 8 weeks of the season and flopped in Big time Back to Back starts. The reason he was signed here and paid that much was for those exact situations. Nut up and earn your money in the biggest and Most crucial spots. Granted it wouldn’t have mattered if he threw a quality start because you have to score runs but the bottom line is put your team in a position to stay in the game and win and he failed miserably!! Is he going to donate any of the money back from the 8 weeks he was on the shelf No I don’t think so. You’re getting paid 43 Million to perform in Clutch situations and starts. If you don’t deliver be prepared to face the consequences and hear it from the fans!!
I’m against booing in general, but honestly, Scherzer wa given ungodly money to show up in big games. He crumnked against the Braves in a hige series, and had a historically bad playoff start. I’m not going to get on the fans for booing, especially since Max was on a rival for years.
Lol, that’s hilarious. If they booed deGrom or even Lindor at this point it’s kind of classless, but Mets fans don’t owe anything to Max Scherzer. Quite the contrary, mercenary free agents going for every last dollar literally owe EVERYTHING to the team they’re signing with. If they don’t perform in those big spots, they’re just getting paid for what they did what their previous team while disgracing our uniform. This respect nonsense with the players has gone far enough. $43 mil per YEAR is enough respect!!
and if that happens- they should use his money to resign Bassit and Diaz
He’s only 50/50 on coming back but that’s good for NY because he really hated being there before this year.
lolMets
Funny how this came out the day they face elimination.
Cishek is one of the relievers that I remember watching over a decade ago with the Marlins. Always had decent results. A shame he got very little playoff chances
If Cishek wants to play next year someone will give him a chance. Whether it will be a playoff contender is another issue entirely
Cishek could get a spring training invite from a contender
I don’t care how rich you are… having two $43M pitchers on a team is insane.
Having one $43M player who is closer to 40 than 30 is insane.
Buck Showalter gives the Mets credibility. Something they were definitely lacking in the post Terry Collins era. deGrom may be “50/50” on returning to the Mets but he is 100% going to whoever offers the most money
I am fascinated to see what DeGrom gets. He is coming off a good but not great 11 starts this season. Before that, he missed over a year. And he is going to be 35 years old next season.
deGrom is done with the Mets. He clearly doesn’t want to play for that franchise anymore. He will be a Brave or Dodger
How do people keep thinking he will sign with the Braves? They quibbled with the face of the franchise in Freddie Freeman over a few million dollars a year, but they’re going to pay deGrom $40+ million a year? Not going to happen.
Quibbled?? Can the Braves force Freeman to sign the deal?
Popular belief is that his agent never shared the best and final offer.
I hope the braves dont sign him honestly.
@rct that was on freemans agent if you follow anything. He gave the Braves and ultimatum and the Braves submitted a final offer that his agent never told him about.
I followed the Freeman thing. Regardless of the specifics, it should never even have reached the point it did. If anyone thinks the Braves are going to shell out $40+ million a year for anyone, especially someone with deGrom’s age and injury history, they’re crazy.
Or Cardinal
Dodgers will be a big threat for all top free agents. They are the new Yankees. They have the best weather, best players, and the best team. They also make the most money in TV and streaming rites. They landed Betts, Freeman, Scherzer recently. They give a player the best chance to win every year moving forward. Other teams just can’t beat them out if they want somebody bad enough. Best case for all the other teams, they win this year and feel they don’t need anyone.
…and also the highest tax rate. Freeman will make less money in L.A. than if he took less from the Braves. How’s that?
That true. I never thought about that. Is it just ego then when players take the bigger contract even though they end up with less money?
They have financial people working for them that make lots of money.
Politicians get bribed with campaign donations to put loopholes into laws…..and the 2 biggest states for that are California and New York.
Best weather? Wasn’t it just 100 degrees for a bunch of days?
The Dodgers will offer him 2 “very lucrative years” but that’s it. They just don’t seem to go beyond the “36 years old” on their free agent signings. Remember Greinke? Dodgers wouldn’t give him the extra year. He went to AZ instead.
“Dodgers will be a big threat for all top free agents. They are the new Yankees. They have the best weather, best players, and the best team.”
slider32;
According to some public farm system ranking sites, they also have the top farm system since mid-season. This is spite of drafting low for more than 5 years.
They don’t need to buy FA’s. There is much more to building winning teams and organizations than overpaying for free agents.
One little thing I noticed when the Braves swept the Mutts is when they showed the Mutts dugout when they were getting smoked, deGrom was almost constantly looking over in the Braves dugout…as if to say,”man it would be nice to be part of that…”
Braves fans loves to say stuff like this. Remember when they said Freddie Freeman hated LA earlier in the year?
I’m the biggest Braves fan…have been for over 40 years. Never heard mention of Freeman hating L.A. However, it has been rumored that deGrom would like to play in Atl. Who wouldn’t?
Who would Atlanta is a terrible city lets be honest. Even Freeman couldnt wait to get out of there.
As a Braves fan I hope they don’t spill large chunks of $ for DeGrom. They have developed their young talent as good as anyone out there. Large contracts = Ozuna types. What a waste of space. Some folks didn’t like the Braves spending $20 mil on Morton. $30-40 mil on a guy who can’t complete a season? Let’s hope not.
@StupendousYappi,, where are you from? Gotham? We all noticed you didn’t mention your city…embarrassed?
Bro please tell me you’re joking because no one could ever be as dumb as you sound. Yeah. Atl is such a crap town, that’s why everyone of their core players signed below market contracts to stay there…
Never heard once that Freeman hated LA. This is just made up BS
Or as if to say, wow they really still have wife beater drunk Ozuna on the team.
Wow you’re one heck of a face reader
As a Mets fan for 35 years, lets all hope he opts out . As soon as he came back this year the Mets fell apart. Injuries piled up and the offense shut down. All the stats back this up.
He’s never been a winner. Never. Yes of course some of it is team dependent, but some of it also isn’t. All things being equal, other pitchers (Bartolo, Carrasco, Scherzer) were able to win games. deGrom is a process guy that doesn’t care about the win, just wants low whips and low ERA, like Votto wants the walk and not the RBI
deGrom kills the momentum every time he takes the mound. Mets were only 6-5 with deGrom this year, despite having one of the best offenses
But fundamentally, deGrom is not even an average talent. The cream rises to the crop. Talent wins out. Hosmer and Moustakas won despite not having “stats”.
I’m a firm believer that if you have talent, even if doesn’t put up great stats, you’re still more likely to win
Essentially, deGrom is not the cream that rises to the top. He was a 9th rd pick for a reason. Take players like Fried. Strasburg. Nola. Many other examples. Not big stats, but they WIN. Legitimate talents. It’s irony that Nola likely will move his team on to the NLDS while deGrom goes home tonight either because he gets lit up or the Mets don’t score
I dont want to hear all the modernist sabermetric gurus chime in with how it’s all the Mets fault deGrom doesnt win. The guy is proven to have a miserable effect on the chemistry
He had his chance with the Mets this year. It’s time for him to move on
Every Mets fan collectively groans when he takes the mound. Noone can honestly say watching deGrom pitch is entertaining. It’s boring and dull. Whatever momentum they had going has to be built back up
66-37 (.640) without deGrom this year. 35-24 (.593) with him, The numbers do not lie, As soon as he came back on August 6th they started to regress to .500
you know what else coincided with that? The JD Davis Trade. The Mets have been absolutely horrible on offense without JD Davis and he is the one that made the team so great.. with JD on the team there were 66-35 but without him they are 35-26. A worse record than degrom and JD was a regular in the lineup where degrom only got out there once every 5ish days. You can even see the stats backing that up as he has been an ops140+ with the giants. Imagine having that at DH along with giving other players a rest instead of ops+ of 20 with Ruf that can barely play the field.
“deGrom is a process guy that doesn’t care about the win, just wants low whips and low ERA” ..
correct me if i am wrong but isnt that how you win games by preventing runs and not allowing people on base? Just throwing that out there as a crazy thought.
There’s zero room for JD Davis on this team. Escobar had a great September and the lone run for the Mets in the first WC game. Now Davis would’ve been a nice replacement for Marte while he was down, but the idea that the Mets are significantly better with Davis is false. He was a wasted roster spot in Queens. He needs to play everyday.
@VPH
Davis would have been welcomed when Giullorme went down for significant time especially with mcneil and escobar not 100%.. Not that im saying he was needed but would have been better than what they were throwing out there and im sure he would have been better than ruf who basically a waste of space and caused the team to start clocks on a lot of rookies needlessly. Would he have been the same after the change of scenery, probably not but he couldnt have been worse.
I also agree not needed next year and would have traded or maybe non tendered.
@flyby I knew clowns would cite the trades. That has nothing to do with it
They were winning with Scherzer leading the way. The end
You’re the same dude who was polishing a Hall of Fame plaque for Travis Jankowski earlier in the year, right? You don’t have a clue.
i never said jankowski was hall of fame player unless again i was being facetious … i said he was solid player that deserved the 4th spot in the outfield over what they had currently. He had a hot hand to start the season worst case he has speed and a solid glove. that could play all 3 positions. Could have had another lightning in the bottle later .
Oh you were probable the guy that preferred dom out in left field every day or cano playing 2nd and throwing mcneil in the outfield. NO NO NO you wanted inciarte to be out there … how about plummer …. maybe lee. Thats it you wanted lee to supplant Nimmo in center and put Make nimmo 4th or 5th of? Have i laid on the sarcasm enough … ok … actually just to be sure… Lets move scherzer to catcher and make him the cleanup hitter as well .then trade alvarez and baty for aroldis chapman to play shortstop for us.
@Camden
They were still doing well in august what killed them is losing Marte as that threw off the lineup big time. Hell they put Alonso batting 2nd (Marte’s usual spot) for games.. If anything that killed the offense as when you had Lindor or Alonso batting it was almost guaranteed one of nimmo or marte was on if not both. Also Scherzer was out significant time too or did you forget that as well. The mets probably were doing just as good if not better with both of them on the il
Also you brought in a right handed dh that had what 10 hits in 2 months, 3 for the month of september. I would have rather degrom dh than ruf. Hell i may have ask Buck to go out there and bat instead of ruf.
@flyby: I was talking to Camden. I agree with everything you said. The replies on this site sometimes don’t go where they should.
@Camden. Been a Met fan for more than 50 years. I think you’re onto something. We’re not anti-sabremetric Luddites, and I for one think WAR, FIP, WHIP and the others are meaningful stats. But at the end of the day, one pitching stat trumps them all-W. We need to look at the entire body of work, and wonder:If this pitcher is x% better than his MLB peers, WHY doesnt hjs team win x/2% more games, let alone x%? I think Von Hayes is right. Tonight is a legacy-making game for Jake. But, as far as Im concerned, I dont care what happens tonight. Id let him walk and sign Verlander or trade for Ohtani.
So it’s deGrom’s fault when the team doesn’t score runs for him? Even though he was an amazing hitter for a pitcher when the DH wasn’t around? Come on.
In 1985 Dave Stieb led the AL in ERA and ERA+ and was 2nd in WAR among all AL pitchers
He finished 2nd to last in Cy Young voting. He received only 2 points
He went only 14-13 on a 99 win Jays team
In today’s game, with liberalism ruining the sport with analytics, he likely would have won the Cy Young award based on WAR and ERA
It’s not enough to dominate. You need the wins also
But wins are a somewhat arbitrary statistic that can’t be accurately attributed to a pitcher. Even pure wins/losses a start completely omits considering factors outside the pitchers control. The variables are numerous enough that the stat is often not an accurate representation of individual accomplishment…. Am I wasting my time here or what?
I am sympathetic to this argument, Cosmo. However, it seems that proponents of a strong (or extreme) version of the argument would prefer to ignore Wins entirely. If a world class pitcher plays on a team that wins 60% of its games, but the team wins only 50% of that pitcher’s starts, is the 10% differential ignoreable? Too many people would prefer to breezily dismiss the differential. I would prefer to dig into the data before deciding the differential is ignoreable.
It will need to be a major hometown overpay to get him or almost anyone on their roster as always. Jason Bay, Bobby Bonilla, maybe this guy too.
I’m with Von Purple Hayes. Tonite is a big deal to deciding to sign de grom to a multi yr deal.
“Friend”.
Stay with the Mets. I don’t want the Braves wasting money on him.
The Braves play in Cobb County, not Fulton County where the city of ATL is. Braves moved because they asked the city to build up areas around the ballpark and the city balked. I’d take my kid to Truist Park no problem. However, I would think long and hard taking him to Turner Field. I was just down there last weekend against the Mets and the Battery is a awesome place for families or a single dude wanting to party.
Too many black people for ya?
Getrealgone2 – Too many black people for ya?
That’s what you got from that?
We won’t go after De’Grom Braves don’t spend that way. If they are going to give money to a pitcher sign Fried to an extension!
We had Chicken wings flown in for a kids birthday party from some place in Atlanta that had great reviews. They turned out to be from some strip club and the wings were terrible.
Goes to show you, never order your wings where the breasts are on the menu.
Since when was DeGrom 0% to return? Like anyone else he’ll return if they offer the biggest contract
@getrealgone2 I am Black and Puerto Rican and grew up in the inner city, went to public school and been around drugs and crime. Was a Marine Corps recruiter in greater Philadelphia. Re-read what you type before you hit “Post Comment” next time.
@bravesnation nc, I am white & was spawned, abused, & denigrated in Poughkeepsie NY. Through my years I’ve noticed, the only color that matters is green. To this day you can march any color politician up to the podium, but if you don’t have cash, you don’t have a say. Tell me I’m wrong
lmao typical deGrom game. 3rd inning Snell has his worst stuff and still deGrom is finding a way to lose the game
Dude absolutely sucks
He sucks so much that his suckiness is rubbing off on the batters and causing them to not hit with runners on
Curly, Absolutely correct! Money will always win no matter the color of one’s skin. Turner Field in Atlanta was not a multifunctional venue outside of the occasional outdoor concert I was there for the last season it was open. Like I said in my earlier post I grew up in the inner city, crime, drugs come from the stereotypical single parent home. Joined the Marines did 21 yrs and retired. Moved my family to the suburbs because don’t want my kids around the things I was when I was a kid. For the Braves being in Cobb County generates more revenue and it truly is a safer environment than Turner Field was. I wouldn’t have posted my comment without having experienced it myself at both ballparks.
@bravesnation nc, sorry if I was brusque, I’m defensive.because when you look into the eyes of deference, you learn not to trust. I trust you’re not running for office?
No way does DeGrom not stay.
Unless he has an ERA of 6.00 in his final four regular season starts. In which case, he’d love to hear the NYMs offer.
Not running for office. I don’t trust the right or the left. Bunch of multimillionaires running campaign ads telling you how horrible the other person is and how they care about you in which they really don’t.
bravesnation nc;
B I N G O !!!!
P.S. Playing politics in the middle of a pandemic should have made Americans aware that this nonsense about wanting to go to DC “To Serve” has nothing to do with their constituents.
It’s “looks” like a no brainer, but it really depends upon deGrom’s career desires and Cohen’s gut instincts. One has to anticipate deGrom’s agent is going for max dollars and years, but does deGrom value post season possibilities, career franchise numbers while knowing Cohen is going to build the best 40 man roster possible?
From a money standpoint, deGrom doesn’t need it and Cohen has more than most small cities, so it comes down to respect during negotiations.
What teams besides the Dodgers, Yankees and Mets can offer better chances of attaining post season participation over the next four seasons? Forget luxury tax implications because they don’t matter to those three teams.
On the flip side, for what deGrom will get AAV, the Mets could probably sign two if not 3 solid pitchers to replace him. I think 70-30 Mets, 30-70 Dodgers.
I feel deGrom’s W-L record has more to do with the Mets hitters facing the opposing team’s ace whenever he pitches. Look at his numbers like in over half of his career starts he’s given up one or fewer runs! Meanwhile, relief pitchers can come in, get one out and rack up 8 wins every year. You have to weigh both sides of a discussion if that’s what you truly want – a discussion.
I hear you, but I think one reason that W-L has been marginalized as a stat is that pitchers are praised for quality starts, not for getting 24 or 27 outs. We are not going back to the days when Steve Carlton was credited with a W for nearly half of his (lousy) teams victories. But it is also true thst Current approaches prioritize silly stats like quality starts but have not yet figured out how to quantify the grit, mental toughness, and physical fortitude required to translate an impressive WHIP into an impressive W-L record. I dont think it helps the game to assume that a pitchers W-L Record is meaningless. I understand the arguments in favor of devaluing The W-L record, but I think we will eventually return to a time when Wins will again be considered meaningful for SP rather thAn stupid and useless for RP. We need more creative analytic approaches
Booing Scherzer is nothing close to the same.
The Mets drafted and developed deGrom. He’s home grown. His effort, leadership, desire to win and class have NEVER been questioned. DeGrom already is a Mets’ legend and his number will be retired. Whether or not he is a Met next year us totally up to him just as it was with Wheeler.
I believe it’s more likely Diaz leaves mainly because of how he was treated by fans and media his first season here. Notice that NOBODY is talking about Cano and how ‘horrible’ that trade was now!
(Ps, good luck Mariners, great to see them back in the post season.)
“…retaining deGrom is sure to be a top priority.”
—It really, really shouldn’t be. If he’s turning down a $33.5m AAV over the next two years or $32.5m in 2023, presumably he wants more, or more years at the least. That’s silly. The Mets are incredibly short in the rotation despite an incredibly high payroll of $148m just for 9 players including the great Darin Ruf. Add in arbitration salaries of about $30m for the 40 HR guy and the NL batting champ and we’re up to $178m for 11 players. Let’s say you brought back Nimmo and Diaz, and added 2 extremely good starters. That gets you to $260m for 15 guys. Still needing 11 players, are you really going to go instead with $240m for 14 players plus whatever you have to pay deGrom, then find another 11 guys with payroll having climbed to at least $275m including deGrom even as you reduced your likely number of starts from your coterie of starters—and did I mention you still need an entire bullpen b/y Diaz?
Wrt the rotation, the Mets have no one in their farm system who looks like a promising starter, so that leaves the 40-man and FA. They can reup Cookie for the $11m difference b/t his $14m team option and $3m buyout, which is probably reasonable for a very thin rotation that can use his roughly league average 150 innings, minus age-related decline. Make it reasonable to figure half your starts from Scherzer, Carrasco, Megill, Peterson, and Lucchesi, meaning you need at least 2 more very good starters if you’re hoping to snare a wild card spot.
It’s rare to go into an offseason needing an entire bullpen (b/y Drew Smith and his 4.38 career FIP). How does Eppler-Alderson do it? It’s the hallmark of an abysmal FO to not be able to think of 2 things at one time, as they did not when they dealt Holderman (ERA in the 2’s for the Mets plus 6 years of control) and Szapucki, 5 years of control remaining, who immediately thrived upon reaching SF, w/ an 1.98 ERA, in return for platoon DHs. I mean, they got Naquin right, a useful spare part / 4th-5th OFer for nothing but pocket change, so we know they understand how rich teams do things at the deadline when such players are needed.
Anyway, it’s not just *not* a ‘top priority,’ it’s patently absurd to look to sign deGrom. It’s Cohen’s money and if he wants to go to $330m by pretending it’s 2018 and mix and match a rotation of Scherzer-deGrom-Carrasco-Megill-Peterson-Lucchesi and at least 2 more starters, it’s his money. But it’s not the way to build a team that stays healthy and effective into October, and the first two guys are only going to be a year older in 2023. Is Scherzer and deGrom for an $80 million AAV, from whom you can project about 40 starts, combined, during their age 73 (combined) season, really what you want to do?