New York Mets: 3 awesome things about the Jacob deGrom extension

deGrom is deBest player on the team.

Above all other things about this contract, on top of all the what ifs, what could be’s, what has been’s, the New York Mets just extended their best player. Yes, that statement is borderline subjective. You could look at all the analytics, pure baseball stats, whatever and find reasons to argue he is not the best player on this team. That is fine.

I, however, simply watch the baseball games. When he is pitching, things feel different, special, like I am watching a game on a national stage. No other players’ starts, at bats, pinch runs, whatever, provide the type of vibe and buzz that deGrom does when he on the bump.

This is a franchise that has traded Tom Seaver. This is a franchise that had to deal with Dwight Gooden and all his personal demons, oh what could have been. This is a franchise that once had a lucky season from R.A. Dickey in an otherwise lost year where they lost 88 games.  This is a franchise that has some of the worst luck mixed in with some odd ownership, to put it nicely.

Yes, this franchise MIGHT have turned the corner this offseason. Yes, they MIGHT be better than they have been. But it is pretty simple right now. At the time that deGrom signed his extension, he did it as the best player on the Mets. He did it as the Cy Young, an award given to him for being the best pitcher in the National League.

This is the Mets’ money, this is how they are choosing to spend it. You cannot look at this and fault them right now. There might never be a better time to make sure they are keeping their best player. They jumped on it.

I will fault the Mets for a lot of things. I am just as honest as the next one. However, this was a good decision. This extension could end up righting a lot of franchise wrongs. Or, it could blow up in their face, but isn’t that just par for the course at this point anyway?

The New York Mets are keeping their best player. They put a price tag on it and got it done. What happens next? None of us know. But they did something that I thought they never really did, they tried. They are trying to keep the fans happy.

This is about as bluntly as I could put it.

The Mets just signed, and kept happy, the best player on their team. If you don’t agree with that, fine. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. But, no matter what happens, deGrom has a chance to be what Gooden never was, a sustainable talent. deGrom has a chance to be what Seaver never was, a Met for life. deGrom already is not what Dickey was, a fluke.

If his floor is having this become a “bad contract” but his ceiling is all of those things I just listed, I will take that trade-off. I will take that deal and I would take that deal 100 out of 100 times.

The Mets might have just given a 30-year-old pitcher a five-year contract who is not a natural pitcher who has previously had Tommy John Surgery and was years away from free agency. But, they also re-signed their best player who has done nothing but prove just how damn good he is each time he takes the mound.

If you choose to emphasize on the former and not the latter, then you will still probably find a way to complain if the Mets win the World Series. That is not something I can help you with. This is a great contract, at a great time, during a great offseason, given to a great player. I couldn’t be more excited. I am sure the Mets themselves and other fans are too.