Would Zack Britton Be An Unnecessary Add For The Mets?

As was reported on February 15, the New York Mets were one of the teams that watched veteran relief pitcher Zack Britton‘s showcase. That was not the first time there was a reported Mets and Britton connection either. Back in January, the Mets were also reported as being interested. Add in the well-known fact that Buck Showalter and Britton have history together in Baltimore, all these reports make sense. With all that being said, the question must be asked: is this a necessary move for New York to make?

Of course, it would be a risky one. Britton’s injury history is well documented. He has only pitched 38 innings since 2019. More specifically, only 19 innings between 2021 and 2022 and he allowed a woeful 18 hits and 13 earned runs over that time.

Among all these struggles, Britton underwent Tommy John surgery on September 9, 2021, as well as got bone chips removed from his pitching elbow. When he finally did come back, he was shut down for arm fatigue. Bottom-line, he is a huge question mark.

Though, what is so intriguing about Britton is that he was one of the premier relief pitchers in the major leagues before his injury issues started in 2020. From 2014 through 2020, Britton logged five sub-2.00 ERA seasons. The almost exclusively sinker-ball pitcher was elite for almost six-straight seasons. Most recently, being just two and three years ago in 2019 (1.91 ERA in 61 1/3 innings) and 2020 (1.89 ERA in 19 innings), respectively. This before he was derailed by the aforementioned elbow issues.

How Would He Fit?

The Mets’ bullpen is getting closer and closer to becoming a finalized unit. Though, given normally teams carry anywhere from seven-to-eight relief pitchers on their roster, a spot or two may still be up for grabs. For context, here is how the unit currently stands:

• Closer: Edwin Díaz
• Set-Up: David Robertson
• 7th-8th Inning: Adam Ottavino
• Middle Relief: Drew Smith
• Left-Handed Option: Brooks Raley
• Long-Relief/Spot-Starter: David Peterson / Joey Lucchesi / Elieser Hernández

As mentioned above, this leaves one or two more spots to be filled. Of course, the Mets have other internal options such as Jeff Brigham, Sam Coonrod, John Curtiss, Zach Greene, Bryce Montes de Oca, Stephen Nogosek, and Stephen Ridings. Though, the common theme among all these possibilities are they are all right handed. So, a move for Britton can theoretically still make sense.

Britton would give the Mets a second, true left-handed relief option. Of course, both Peterson and Lucchesi are left-handed, but have almost been exclusively used as starters throughout their careers.

Why The Move Would Be Unnecessary 

Again, the reported interest from the Mets regarding Britton makes sense. Though, as outlined above, a move would bring a ton of risk. Per Fangraph’s crowd-sourced projections, the 35-year-old Britton is projected to sign a $5-million deal over one season. Despite money not exactly being an issue for the Mets, would it be wise to invest around $5 million in a guy at the twilight of his career and who is trying to re-establish himself after injury?

Also, despite potentially having a spot or two still to be decided, there are about seven different names who can potentially fill those roles. You would hope that through spring training at least one or two of those potential options can emerge and round out a pretty strong group.

Further, despite currently only having one true left-handed option, it appears, given the current state of the rotation, either Peterson or Lucchesi should be able to fill that second left-handed relief role. So, do the Mets really need to take that risk on Britton given all their internal options?

At the end of the day, if the Mets brought in Britton it would not be an awful move. There is upside there, especially if Britton can find anywhere near the form he was pre-surgery. Though, with what the Mets currently have, and the potential opportunity cost of using a struggling Britton when there are several other likely serviceable options in house, a deal just seems unnecessary.

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