Rumored Baltimore Orioles Target Sean Manaea Agrees Reunites With New York Mets

One of the rumored pitching targets of the Baltimore Orioles this offseason agreed to a deal with the New York Mets.

Oct 20, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; New York Mets pitcher Sean Manaea (59) pitches during the second inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers during game six of the NLCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Dodger Stadium / Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles knew they needed to go after starting pitching this offseason.

With Corbin Burnes hitting free agency and the duo of Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells recovering from elbow surgeries, the outlook of their rotation was bleak considering their move to bring in Trevor Rogers ahead of this past trade deadline was a disaster.

But, the Orioles were able to add an arm, signing Japanese star Tomoyuki Sugano to a one-year deal.

He's coming off a 2024 season in Nippon Professional Baseball where he won the Central League MVP award with a 1.67 ERA across his 24 starts at 35 years old, so if he's able translate his level of play that's produced a career 2.45 ERA in 281 outings, then he will be a huge addition for Baltimore.

Still, Mike Elias and his front office are looking for other moves, and Sean Manaea was viewed as a potential option for them after he had the best season of his career in 2024 by changing his throwing angle.

If they had some level of interest, he is no longer available.

Jeff Passan of ESPN reported the left-hander agreed to a deal with the New York Mets, reuniting himself with the franchise that was responsible for his renaissance.

BREAKING: Left-hander Sean Manaea and the New York Mets are in agreement on a three-year, $75 million contract, sources tell ESPN. The 32-year-old is running it back with the Mets.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 23, 2024

The Orioles likely were never going to pay that price.

While they have more money to spend this winter under the ownership of David Rubenstein, evident by the contracts they handed Tyler O'Neill and Gary Sanchez, shelling out that much money for a 32-year-old who has a volatile past is not something that Elias has done during his tenure in charge.

This deal could also get them one step closer to a Burnes reunion.

Baltimore is still a longshot to bring back the former NL Cy Young winner based on the projected contract he's likely going to command, but the Mets were a rumored suitor of his, so with them making this move to bring back Manaea, that could be a signal they are no longer in the Burnes sweepstakes.

Either way, the Orioles have to look for a different option if they are going to bring in another starter.