David Peterson, LHP
Player Data: Age: 25, B/T: L/L
Primary Stats: 10 G, 9 GS, 49.2 IP, 6-2, 3.44 ERA, 5 HR, 24 BB, 40 SO, 1.208 WHIP
Advanced Stats:123 ERA+, 4.52 FIP, 0.5 WAR
Free Agent:2026
2020 Salary:$563.5K
Grade: B
2020 Review:
For a guy who was called up unexpectedly after the New York Mets realized their rotation options were a lot shallower than they thought, David Peterson had quite the rookie season. He led the team in wins with six and did so with a 3.44 ERA over 49.2 IP.
Peterson spent last season in the minors, and had quite the unfortunate season, allowing a .340 average on balls in play, with a 4.19 ERA on the season.
Still, despite this disappointing showing, Peterson was given a chance at the Mets roster in 2020 following the departures of Zack Wheeler to free agency, Marcus Stroman via opt-out, and Noah Syndergaard to Tommy John Surgery. With Steven Matz struggling and Jacob deGrom as the only reliable arm at the front of the Mets rotation, the team turned to Peterson to make an impact.
And make an impact he did, as he went 5.2 innings and allowed just two earned runs in his major league debut, picking up the win as the team defeated the Boston Red Sox, 8-3.
In August, Peterson was the best starting arm on the Mets behind deGrom. In his only loss of the month, he gave up only three runs and struck out eight over six innings. Over his following three starts, he only gave up five earned runs across 14 IP, securing the win in two of those three outings and a no-decision in the remainder.
On Sept. 7, Peterson had his worst outing of the season, going two innings while giving up five earned runs on three hits and four walks. Despite the unfortunate outing, Peterson, unlike a lot of rookie pitchers, bounced back, and followed up with three straight dominant outings in which he gave up two runs or less in each appearance, including a six inning, one earned run masterpiece where he struck out 10 batters on Sept. 19.
Peterson finished off his season on Sept. 24, going seven innings of one-run baseball, striking out four.
The left-handed rookie did struggle a bit with control this season, as he averaged 4.35 walks per nine innings and led all Mets pitchers with 24 walks. Peterson struggled to keep his pitch count down as a result, and only went more than five innings once in 10 starts across the season. Because of this, he earns himself a B on the year.
2021 Outlook:
Peterson had a fantastic rookie season for a guy who struggled in the minor leagues just a year ago. His 3.44 ERA was third-best on the team in 2020 behind Jacob deGrom and reliever Edwin Diaz.
The Mets are a team that desperately need to make changes to their rotation if they want to have a chance to compete in 2021. We have learned from experience that Rick Porcello and Michael Wacha are not the answer, but Peterson might be. He will definitely slot into this rotation, just most likely not as the number two starter, as the Mets will need to make ample moves this offseason to obtain a more reliable pitcher behind deGrom in order to have a chance to be competitive.
