In a mildly surprising move, Marcus Stroman accepted the Mets’ qualifying offer on Wednesday. Seemingly excited (as we all were) by Steve Cohen’s introductory press conference and perhaps sensing just how poorly this year’s free agent market is going to develop, the Long Island native chose the security of a one-year, $18.9 million deal rather than testing free agent waters.
Short term, there’s no downside to this move from the Mets’ perspective. Stroman has consistently churned out 3-4 win seasons by both fWAR and WARP over the past four years, making him one of the most consistent performers in baseball.