With the Mets' surplus of starting pitching, the team is actively shopping starters.
The Mets are "actively" shopping some of their starting pitchers, according to Ken Davidoff of the New York Post. Among the starters that could be on the move, Davidoff lists Bartolo Colon, Dillon Gee, and Jon Niese as players that could be elsewhere in 2015.
Along with the aforementioned trio, the Mets' roster also includes Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler, and Jacob deGrom. deGrom is coming off a Rookie of the Year campaign in 2014, while the 24 year-old Wheeler has a 3.50 ERA in 49 career starts. Harvey missed all of 2014 after undergoing Tommy John surgery, but the Mets are expecting a big year from him as well. In 36 starts over the 2012 and 2013 seaons, Harvey has a career ERA of 2.39, along with a 9.88 K/9 rate. Given the potential of Harvey, Wheeler and deGrom, it's easy to see why the Mets prefer to move one of the other three.
Colon, who is currently entering the second and final year of his two-year contract with the Mets, will make $11 million in 2015. Colon signed the two-year deal with New York after a strong 2013 season in Oakland, in which he posted a 2.65 ERA over 30 starts. In his first year with the Mets, Colon a 4.09 ERA over 31 starts, which was just above his career ERA of 3.95.
Gee will enter 2015 with two years of team control remaining, and he'll likely make around $5 million for the 2015 season. Despite an injury plagued season in 2014, Gee's numbers stayed right around his career marks. For the 2014 season, Gee posted a 4.00 ERA over 22 starts, along with a 6.16 K/9 rate and a 2.82 BB/9 rate. For his career, Gee has a 3.91 ERA over 103 starts, along with a 6.53 K/9 and a 2.88 BB/9.
After signing a contract extension in 2012, Niese will make $16 million over the next two years, with club options for 2017 and 2018 that would pay him $21 million in total for those two seasons. Since signing the extension, Niese has yet to disappoint the Mets, posting a 3.49 ERA over 84 starts over the last three years.
The biggest concern for the Mets right now could be their pitchers' current value in the market, as noted by Joel Sherman of the New York Post. With Nelson Cruz officially headed to Seattle, the top of the free agent market has become saturated with pitching, and teams looking for bats could focus on trades. Despite the advantage of a surplus of proven starters, the Mets may benefit by waiting to see what teams miss out on some of their top free agent pitching targets.