Madison Bumgarner. Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

Why the Mets should take a chance on Madison Bumgarner

By Josh Kestenbaum | Last updated 4/21/23

The Arizona Diamondbacks designated three-time World Series champion Madison Bumgarner for assignment on Thursday, leading the Mets to “do their homework” on the left-hander, per Andy Martino of SNY.

Left-hander Madison Bumgarner has been designated for assignment by the Arizona Diamondbacks, who will eat more than $34 million remaining on his contract, sources tell ESPN. Story, free and unlocked, at ESPN: https://t.co/zD5uLJNOUx
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) April 20, 2023

There’s no harm in the Mets taking a chance on the 33-year-old lefty. Assuming that Bumgarner clears waivers, he can sign with any team for the MLB minimum. With owner Steve Cohen’s virtually unlimited funds and clear comfort in spending them, the money shouldn’t be an issue.

What may scare the Mets is Bumgarner’s stats. His fastball velocity is down from 2022 (91.2 to 89.5), per Baseball Savant, and his ERA is ridiculous (10.26).

However, the Mets are facing a bit of a crisis in their starting rotation. Justin Verlander, Jose Quintana and Carlos Carrasco are out injured, and Max Scherzer is facing a 10-game suspension for the use of foreign substances.

Spoke to source today who says Scherzer has "zero chance" of avoiding mandatory 10-game suspension from ejection. Source notes that 2023 MLB memo explicitly says rosin can be deemed an illegal substance if overused. That it's not supposed to be applied anywhere but on the mound.
— John Harper (@NYNJHarper) April 20, 2023

On top of the injuries and suspension, the Mets just haven’t gotten great pitching this season. As a team, they rank 15^th in ERA (4.14) and 21st (8.49) in strikeouts per nine innings while having the fourth-highest walks per nine innings (4.30).

The last few seasons have not been kind to Bumgarner, but it couldn’t hurt the Mets to take a chance on a pitcher who has championship pedigree and plenty of experience and wisdom to impart to the team’s younger starters.

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