Mets sign LHP Sean Manaea to a three-year, $75 million contract

Manaea will return to a starting rotation he helped lead deep into the playoffs

The Mets filled a much-needed vacancy at the top of their rotation early Monday morning with a familiar face.

According to multiple reports, the Mets and LHP Sean Manaea agreed to a three-year, $75 million contract, an average annual value of $25 million per year.

The deal is pending a physical.

Manaea, who will be 33 on opening day, rejuvenated his career with the Mets in 2024, going 12-6 with a 3.47 ERA over 181.2 IP and 32 starts. He posted a 114 ERA+ (14 percent better than league average) and allowed 63 hits against 184 strikeouts and 2.8 fWAR as well.

Manaea has spent the better part of two years reinventing himself after spending a lot of time at Driveline Baseball in 2023, and took a final and major step towards completing his reformation in the second half of this season when he dropped down even further and began to throw across his body, emulating Chris Sale’s delivery with a high degree of success.

The result? A 3.02 ERA in his final 18 starts and his emergence as the staff ace and staff leader.

He admittedly hit a wall stamina-wise in the NLCS, which stands to reason since his combined total of regular season innings and postseason innings pushed him over the 200 IP mark, which is more than any other season for him to-date.

Manaea is still a swing-and-miss arm, albeit not prolifically, and the Mets pitching staff needs arms that can create strikeouts, as we learned in the NLCS against the Dodgers.

His experience, ability and willingness to transform, evolve and adjust all have value for the Mets and his return will serve as a much-needed presence for the top of their rotation. He profiles more as a 2-3 pitcher, but he stepped up and performed more like an ace for the Mets down the stretch and into the playoffs.

Based on his resurgent campaign in 2024 and the way an expensive starting pitching market evolved, Manaea’s AAV figured to be in the $24-25 million range and it was believed he could get a four-year deal in the marketplace. But, he took three years and an AAV in the projected range to stay with the Mets for the foreseeable future.

The Mets need him and they need a lot starting pitching in 2025. He was a big part of their cultural shift in 2024 as well, so this is an ideal fit for them as they try and build off a successful 2024 season.

Manaea will rejoin a starting rotation which currently consists of Kodai Senga, David Peterson, Frankie Montas, Clay Holmes, Paul Blackburn, Griffin Canning, and Tylor Megill.

The Mets have expressed interest publicly in signing Rōki Sasaki, who they reportedly met with in person in Los Angeles last week, but his market is expected to be big and include teams from all markets since he doesn’t qualify for major league free agency due to his age. He would only require international bonus pool money, from which the Mets have been allowed $6.2 million. However, the Mets reportedly have $5 million of their allotment dedicated to a pre-arranged deal for 16-year-old Elian Peña, so if Sasaki is sign-able, they will likely need to trade for more pool money.

David Stearns has said the Mets intend to go with a six-man rotation for the bulk of the 2025 season. So, if the Mets can land Sasaki, Manaea’s presence would likely push Canning, Blackburn and Megill out of any sort of competition for a top six spot in the club’s rotation and either into the bullpen in the minor leagues, or outside the organization altogether. Canning was signed to a $4.25 million major league contract in December, but Blackburn and Megill are arbitration eligible and their full salaries isn’t guaranteed until late March.

Manaea has posted a 4.00 ERA over his nine-year career with the Mets, A’s, Giants and Padres. The Mets originally signed him to a two-year, $28 million contract with an opt-out after 2024, that which he exercised after his strong first season with the club. Both he and the Mets expressed mutual interest in a reunion immediately following the National League Championship Series, and both continued to express interest in such a reunion throughout the off-season to-date.