The Mets have added a third new arm to their starting rotation next season.
Sean Manaea improved his velocity last year and found success with a new pitch.
The Mets are now hoping the left-handed pitcher can translate that into a good season or two for the club.
Manaea agreed to a two-year contract worth $28 million with an opt-out after this season, the Post's Jon Heyman first reported Sunday.
Manaea, 31, pitched in 31 games as the Giants' swingman last season, posting a 4.44 ERA.
Overall, he pitched 117²/₃ innings with 128 strikeouts.
The addition comes two and a half weeks after the Mets were unable to acquire their top offseason target, Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, from the Dodgers on a 12-year contract worth $325 million.
The Mets also pursued Lucas Giolito, who signed a two-year contract with the Red Sox worth $38.5 million.
According to Statcast, Manaea averaged 93.6 mph with his four-seam fastball last season, an increase of more than 2 mph from the previous year.
Manaea's increased torso rotation during training at Driveline Baseball last winter is believed to have contributed to his increased speed.
Manaea also added a sweeper, throwing it 10.4 percent of the time, while holding opponents to just a .140 batting average.
The change seemed to click for Manaea in the second half of last season, and although Manaea struggled in the first half, he posted a 3.43 ERA in his final 17 games and a 5.49 ERA in 20 games.
Manaea, a former Indiana State University standout, also pitched for the Athletics and Padres during his eight-year major league career.
Manaea's deal is the first multi-year deal the Mets signed this offseason.
He joins a rotation that also includes newcomers Luis Severino and Adrian Hauser, as well as Kodai Senga and Jose Quintana.
The Mets also have depth options in Tyler Megill, Jose Butt and David Peterson (who is expected to miss at least the first two months of the season as he rehabs from hip surgery).
Severino signed a one-year deal worth $13 million, making it the Mets' biggest expense this offseason prior to the Manaea deal.
Hauser is arbitration-eligible and is expected to earn a contract in the $5 million to $6 million range.
As it stands, Chiga and Manaea are the only pitchers in that group whose contracts are guaranteed beyond next season.
This flexibility allows team officials to move on from pitchers within the organization who could be pieces in 2025 and beyond, following last summer's breakup that brought in veteran prospects and a year of realignment for the Mets. You will have the opportunity to evaluate.
But the Mets aren't ignoring next season, as the format allows teams just above .500 to qualify for the postseason.
To that end, the team could still use another bat after the additions of Harrison Bader, Tyron Taylor, and Joey Wendle, which could improve the team's defense.
Justin Turner and Jorge Soler are among the names on the free agent market that would make sense for the Mets to fill the DH role.
If the Mets were to sign Turner, he could be part of a third base lineup that looks unstable.
Another third base candidate, Ronnie Mauricio, has undergone surgery for a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and is not expected to return before September, leaving Brett Batty and Mark Vientos to enter spring training as third basemen. Become.
Vientos and DJ Stewart are the main DH options on the roster.
