Luis Severino Signing Paying Early Dividends For Mets

During the offseason, the New York Mets took a chance and signed right-hander Luis Severino to a one-year, $13 million contract, hoping he could recapture his old dominant form from his days with the Yankees. In Tuesday night’s loss against the San Francisco Giants, Severino didn’t get the win but showed flashes of dominance. 

The right-hander retired the first 12 batters he faced before a Michael Conforto bloop single in the bottom of the fifth. The Giants scored three runs in the inning, but none of the hits were extra-base hits. According to Baseball Savant, the average exit velocity against Severino’s fastball was 88.8 miles per hour (82.8 mph on his sinker). 

On the night, Severino pitched six innings, allowed three runs on five hits, and struck out five on 91 pitches (65 strikes) in the loss. He was able to dictate the strike zone early, as evident by throwing a first-pitch strike to 20 of the 24 batters he faced. 

If you examine the start more closely, Severino had 11 swings and misses, the second-most he has had in any start this year (16 against the Reds on April 6). With his fastball averaging 95.6 mph, he is showing that the velocity is still in his arm, which allows him to mix his pitches effectively. 

Luis Severino, 96mph ⛽️ pic.twitter.com/kneF1X5UuY

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 24, 2024

Even though Severino did not get the result he wanted for the team, he knows that if he sticks to the same process, the good results will continue. 

“You make great pitches, and if I continue to do that, things will go my way.”

With likely one more start left for Severino in April, the 30-year-old is 2-2 with a 2.67 ERA and has 26 strikeouts to 9 walks in 27 innings. He didn’t stop the losing streak, but he’s been the pitcher the Mets can rely on for some form of length in the early portion of the year. 

So far, Severino leads the team in innings pitched and strikeouts. He has pitched at least five innings in each of his first five starts and six innings in back-to-back outings. Not only is Severino providing length, but he has also been consistent in April by allowing five earned runs in his last four starts (2.05 ERA). 

While it’s tough to say the Mets have an ace right now with Kodai Senga on the injured list, at least Severino has been the most consistent starter the Mets have up until this point. It’s a long year, but the confidence is growing for him and after the rough patch he went through in 2023, it has to feel like a sigh of relief. 

At the very least, if Severino can spell the bullpen every five days by throwing quality starts like last night, it can only help the team going forward.

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