Jose Quintana’s added bonus is his left-handedness.
While saying he didn’t set out to necessarily add a lefty to the Mets rotation for next season, general manager Billy Eppler acknowledged Wednesday that Quintana, who arrived last week on a two-year contract worth $26 million, provides a dimension the team was lacking on a full-time basis.
“At the end it’s kind of a separator, but it’s not any kind of internal mandate that we carry into the wintertime and say we have to walk with a left-handed starter,” Eppler said on a Zoom call. “It’s nice to provide variability and be able to attack opponents in different ways and there could be circumstances where we try to pace rest and usage based on an opponent, if the schedule allows and the off days allow.”
Left-hander David Peterson received 19 starts last season in a fill-in capacity, but his role is still undetermined for 2023. The veteran Quintana pitched to a 2.93 ERA last season in 32 starts combined for the Pirates and Cardinals.
“It’s kind of more Jose’s demeanor, his experience, his savvy for doing what he does and doing it at an extremely high level and for a long period of time,” Eppler said. “That is what drove us there more than the hand he throws with.”
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Quintana, a native of Colombia, began his professional career in the Mets organization in 2006.
“It’s time to win and it was the perfect fit,” Quintana said. “The perfect team and we have everything here to show that and I’m really glad to get this opportunity to come here.”
The Mets will hold a press conference Thursday at Citi Field to officially announce Brandon Nimmo’s return on an eight-year contract worth $162 million.
The team will also hold its annual holiday celebration, this year with Todd Zeile filling the role of Santa and distributing presents to students, along with Nimmo, Daniel Vogelbach and manager Buck Showalter.
