New York Mets Rotation, Now with More Former A's

Jason Burke | Dec 24, 2024

Aug 21, 2021; Oakland, California, USA; Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Sean Manaea (55) throws a pitch during the first inning against the San Francisco Giants at RingCentral Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

If Oakland A's fans are ever caught wondering "what if?" then turning on a New York Mets game in 2025 may provide some insight. Granted, the A's never had a shot at players like Juan Soto or Francisco Lindor, but they did employ Starling Marte for a brief period, and three candidates in the Mets rotation are also former A's.

New York recently re-signed beloved lefty Sean Manaea to a three-year, $75 million deal (pending a physical). This will take him through his age 35 season. The "Throwin' Samoan" originally came to the A's in the Ben Zobrist trade with the Kansas City Royals in 2015, the year K.C. beat the Mets in the World Series.

Manaea was also with New York in 2024, and he posted a terrific 3.47 ERA (3.83 FIP) across 181 2/3 innings, and served as the ace the team needed in their postseason run that took them to the National League Championship Series. This was also the first time they made it to the NLCS since Manaea was traded to Oakland in '15, so he has been linked to the Mets' two most recent runs in different ways.

Next year he'll also have Soto on his team, which could lead to a slightly different ending being written.

In addition to Manaea, the Mets also brought aboard Frankie Montas for two years and $36 million. Montas came to the A's in the Josh Reddick/Rich Hill trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2016. After some early struggles, he really started to find his groove in 2018.

During the 2020 postseason, he was called upon early in Game 3 of the AL Wild Card Series against the Chicago White Sox, and came in from the bullpen to largely shut down Chicago in the fourth and fifth innings, allowing two hits and one run while earning the win.

Without Montas, the A's may not win that game, which was just their second series win in the postseason this century.

The final piece of the rotation could end up being Paul Blackburn, though he's currently listed as a long relief option for the club on Roster Resource. Blackburn was another trade acquisition made by the A's in 2016, with the team trading away Danny Valencia to the Seattle Mariners for Pauly B.

Blackburn was an up-and-down guy from 2017-21 before having a sterling first half in 2022 that landed him a gig at the All Star Game. He struggled a little bit in the second half of that season and battled injuries in both '22 and '23, but has been roughly a league average pitcher since his breakout.

He was traded to the Mets this past summer in exchange for Kade Morris, a right-hander from nearby Modesto that was selected by the Mets in the third round of the 2023 MLB Draft.

There is no guarantee that all three pitchers will end up in the Mets' rotation for any part of the 2025 season, let alone the whole campaign, but for A's fans that want a peek at a team they could have fielded in another timeline, this group could provide that glimpse.