MLB Roundup 12/8: The Mets are interested in Rick Porcello

Mets interested in Rick Porcello

This isn’t the first time we’ve heard this connection, but it’s a little more clarity on the market of a former Red Sox pitcher. The Mets are showing interest in Rick Porcello and have met with the righty. Obviously the money is a big part of this, as with every other free agent, but without knowing what his offers look like this appears to be a great fit. For the Mets’ part, they have a clear rotation spot open after a solid top four of Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Marcus Stroman and Steven Matz. Sliding Porcello in that five spot would be a good way to fill that group out, albeit not one without its risks.

On the other end, Porcello gets to stay near home (he’s a Northeast native from New Jersey), he gets to pitch on a non-terrible team (high praise, I know), and he gets to pitch in an environment more conducive to his flaws. I think we tend to overrate the effect of a pitcher going from the AL to the NL, but it is certainly better even if it’s only marginally. It seems likely that Porcello is going to sign a pillow contract to try and get a better deal next winter, and Queens certainly isn’t the worst place for that to happen.

Sox Spin: The Red Sox, meanwhile, have not been connected to the righty despite the glaring hole in the back of their rotation from his departure. Of course, they haven’t been connected to anyone yet. Whether that is a symptom of them not getting into the market yet or just that they are better at keeping their moves close to the vest remains to be seen.

Trevor Rosenthal signs with Royals

There wasn’t a whole lot of actual news on the docket on Saturday, but one minor move did go through with Trevor Rosenthal signing with the Royals. It wasn’t all that long ago that Rosenthal was one of the more exciting young arms in the game. With a big fastball and a ton of swing and miss, he looked like a closer who would stick around a while. After making the All-Star team in 2015, he started dealing with some injuries the next season and was never truly the same. He was with Washington last season after missing all of 2018 and had one of the worst stretches in baseball history to start the season. He was eventually released with a 22.74 ERA over 12 appearances in which he recorded only 19 outs with five strikeouts and 15 walks. Eventually he latched on with the Tigers and was better, but mostly because that was the only direction in which he could move. The Royals are taking a chance on his stuff being back after a full offseason, and don’t risk much for the privilege.

Sox Spin: No minor-league deal is really a bad one, so I certainly would not have been upset if the Red Sox had signed Rosenthal with an invite to spring training. We’ve seen him do it before and at 30 years old it’s not as if he’s washed up. That being said, I’m not overly upset he went elsewhere, either. Presumably he saw the Royals as the best chance of getting back to the majors.