Justin Verlander Gets 2 Years, $86.6M from Mets

The Mets have reached an agreement with Justin Verlander on a two-year deal that will reportedly pay him $86 million and has a vesting option for a third year. Details are slim for now, but we’ll update this in case you are somehow checking back on a Cubs page for news about the Mets.

Verlander to Mets. $86M 2 years. Vesting option 3rd year.

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 5, 2022

This could actually impact the Cubs, though, as the Mets reportedly offered Jameson Taillon a contract last week that may have been a little lower than he believes he can get. The Cubs have been named among the teams to watch in the pursuit of Taillon and that second-tier pitching market could gain a lot of steam as the biggest dominoes fall.

Update: The deal matched Max Scherzer’s record $43.3 million, which Verlander had been targeting. The third year is valued at $35 million and will vest if Verlander pitches 140 innings in 2024. That’s big money for a dude who turns 40 in February, but Verlander appears to have a pretty big lead in his race against Father Time.