According to Adam Rubin of ESPN New York, veteran righthander Dillon Gee will be the Mets fifth starter based on information he received from several team sources.
Despite a stiff challenge from prospect Rafael Montero, Gee will remain in the rotation as the Mets head into Opening Day.
Gee could get traded within the month as Rubin also reported. But seriously, this was the right move for the Mets – logistically speaking.
If you want to get a top return for Gee, you don’t diminish his value by kicking him out of the rotation and into middle relief.
Once Gee is moved, Montero will get his chance to shine in the rotation.
March 28
Even though Dillon Gee is the clear frontrunner for the final spot in the Mets rotation, Rafael Montero is not being ruled out just yet. According to Andy Martino of the Daily News, there is still conversation in the Mets organization about naming Montero as the 5th starter
The article also contains some good quotes from Gee, who needs to build up his endurance for a starting role. Gee’s preparation is still somewhat behind since he was was slated to start the season in the bullpen prior to Zack Wheeler‘s injury.
However, Gee believes that he has enough time to get back on track.
“I think if it would have lasted a little bit longer, it would have been tough,” Gee said.
“But (Wheeler’s injury) happened where we still had two, three weeks left in camp, so I think that was enough time to get back in the starter routine, and get your pitches up. And actually, it saved me from too many outings of high pitches. I kind of saved some bullets this spring.”
Terry Collins added that Gee will get two more starts this spring, and will be able to increase his workload to 100 pitches before the season starts.
Despite Gee being the heavy favorite, Stephen Guilbert from Mack’s Mets makes a compelling case for Rafael Montero
“Dillon Gee is an okay pitcher. Montero could be a very good one. Before Jacob deGrom was Jacob deGrom, fans thought Rafael Montero would be the sleeper prospect who would take over New York like a young Pedro in Montreal.”
“Like the Matt den Dekker/Juan Lagares story arc, deGrom won the job, performed well, took home hardware, and cemented his spot on the team. That does not mean that Rafael Montero all of a sudden stopped being a good pitcher. Like most young starters, he merely had growing pains when he pitched in the majors for the first time.”
Thoughts: A lot of prospect rankings seem do be down on Montero after his underwhelming debut, but this is an overreaction. As Guilbert explains in his article, Montero is still a very talented young pitcher.
However, I’d still like to see Gee win the job. He’s proven to be a dependable starter in the majors, and has a respectable track record. Gee’s record is 40-32 in his career, and he has a 3.91 ERA during five major league seasons.
