The New York Mets still have time to add a starting pitcher this offseason. Although they have made moves to improve other aspects of their team (infield, bullpen help), the Mets have yet to bring in a formidable starter, and with six weeks remaining in MLB’s hot stove season, David Stearns and the rest of the Mets front office are expected to continue spending and land a big-time starter.
The top names available on the starting pitcher market include Framber Valdez and Ranger Suarez, who are having a slow-developing free agency to this point. And then there is another tier of starters like Zac Gallen, Zack Littell, and Chris Bassitt that the Mets could target. A recent prediction has the Mets landing former Blue Jays starter and former All-Star Chris Bassitt, who struck out 166 batters this season and posted a sub-4.00 ERA this past season.
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Mets Predicted to Land Chris Bassitt
Landing Chris Bassitt would be a great addition for the Mets. Down the stretch of the 2025 season, New York’s rotation was hampered by injuries, and it ultimately had to rely on a lot of young arms to get through the season.
Adding Chris Bassitt gives the Mets rotation one of the best inning-eaters in baseball.
SNY’s Anthony McCarron recently came out with 10 Bold Predictions for the Mets and Yankees this offseason, and one of them includes “Bass (itt) Fishing” for former All-Star starter Chris Bassitt:
“You still have hard feelings over Chris Bassitt’s poor outing for the Mets in Game 3 of the 2022 Wild Card Series against the Padres? Get over it. He can help the Mets now and exudes a toughness that, frankly, the current group could use. Bassitt pitched brilliantly out of the bullpen for Toronto last October (1.04 ERA in seven games) and provided reliable innings as a starter in three years there. Teams love versatility! So the Mets sign him as a hybrid pitcher.”
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Is a Chris Bassitt, Mets Reunion Plausible?
As McCarron kind of hints at, Bassitt was once a New York Mets pitcher back in 2022. He spent one season with the Mets, made 30 starts, and posted a 3.42 ERA over 181.2 innings. That 2022 season was one of the better seasons in Bassitt’s career.
In 2025, he made 31 starts with the Blue Jays and posted a 3.96 ERA over 170.1 innings and struck out 166 batters. Bassitt has pitched in 170+ innings in four straight seasons and has become known as a durable arm, being able to take the ball every fifth day.
And the Mets can certainly afford Bassitt as well. According to Spotrac, his market value is two years and $31 million.
He’s 36 years old, so that’s why Spotrac doesn’t project him as a $60 million+ arm, but that AAV of $15.5 million would be among the higher marks for a starting pitcher this offseason to this point.
However, he is somewhat of a late bloomer in MLB, and didn’t really turn into a true starter, and a good one at that, until he crossed age-30.