Mets Free Agent Seth Lugo Attracting Interest As A Starter

Seth Lugo has exclusively pitched in relief for the New York Mets over the past two seasons. But the free agent has starting experience, which makes him an intriguing option on the open market.

While Jacob deGrom, Chris Bassitt and Taijuan Walker would be welcome additions to any big league rotation, there’s another Mets free agent who is garnering consideration as a starter.

That would be Seth Lugo. According to The Athletic’s Will Sammon, more than a dozen teams have some interest in the right-hander, and a few are thinking about Lugo as a potential starter.

That’s notable because Lugo has not made a major league start since 2020, when the soon-to-be 33-year-old made seven such appearances for New York. Lugo pitched exclusively – and successfully – out of the bullpen over the last two seasons, recording a 3.56 ERA over 111.1 innings while tallying 10.0 K/9.

Lugo has spent his entire seven-year career with the Mets, who are not believed to be among the initial teams vying for the pitcher’s services, per Sammon. That, of course, can change. However, an opportunity to start – and a lengthy list of other in-house free agents that requires the Mets’ attention – could result in Lugo pitching elsewhere for the first time in 2023.

Lugo has had mixed results as a member of New York’s rotation. He had a 6.15 ERA in his seven 2020 starts, but that mark was 3.91 over five starts in 2018. Lugo had a 4.76 ERA over a career-high 18 starts in 2017 and a personal-best 2.68 ERA over eight starts as a rookie in 2016.

Overall, Lugo has a 4.35 ERA with a 1.336 WHIP over 194.2 career innings as a starting pitcher. Those numbers are significantly better over Lugo’s 300 innings as a reliever; he has a 2.91 ERA, 1.053 WHIP and 10.0 K/9.

While Lugo’s splits suggest he’s better off in the bullpen, his arsenal includes multiple pitches that could serve him well if developed further. Lugo primarily uses a fastball-curveball combo, but he’s shown a sinker, slider and changeup, too. There could be teams that see untapped – and rotation-worthy – potential in Lugo’s lesser offerings.

The Mets, meanwhile, have holes in their bullpen and a few notable free agent relievers in addition to Lugo. Trevor May, Adam Ottavino, Mychal Givens, Tommy Hunter, Trevor Williams and Joely Rodríguez are all available as well.

That means the relief market will have to factor into New York’s offseason plans, even if Lugo doesn’t.