Todd Frazier is a Jersey man with some experience in New York. Ultimately, prior to retiring following the 2021 season, the 11-year veteran appeared in 79 games for the Yankees and 262 more for the Mets.
Because they were teammates with the Yankees in 2017, he also has a lot of knowledge about the recently acquired Mets pitcher Luis Severino, who reportedly inked a one-year, $13 million contract on Wednesday. Severino struggled to a 6.65 ERA in an injury-plagued 2023 season, so Frazier sees the ingredients for a comeback, but he cautioned that Severino’s opportunities are running out if he doesn’t contribute for the Mets.
“I think ‘confusing’ is the best word to describe last year’s performance,” Frazier said on Thursday’s “Foul Territory” program. “It seems to me that when you watch the guy pitch, he has good stuff and is getting hit hard. Did he give pitches a tip? Was his stuff squatty? … Sometimes his slider worked incredibly well. He certainly needed a shift, perhaps in the form of a smaller market.
“Luis has a busy offseason ahead of him, and if he doesn’t return to the player I knew years ago, this will be the most important year of his career. He needs to work through some issues before moving on. This might be the last straw for him.”
The Mets are taking a chance that Severino regains the dominance he showed during his several seasons with the Yankees: The right-hander with a strong fastball curve recorded a 3.18 ERA and 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings in 2017–18, garnering votes for Cy Young in both campaigns. Severino has only pitched 120 innings in the five seasons that have followed due to injuries; he missed all of 2020 due to Tommy John surgery and dealt with a lat strain and oblique strain in 2023. Nevertheless, despite his dismal 6.65 ERA and 1.65 WHIP in 89 1/3 innings from 2023, he had a cumulative 2.85 ERA.
Severino is the only obvious rotation piece for the Mets, along with Jose Quintana and Kodai Senga. Severino is a risk, but a strong season could go a long way toward helping the Mets bounce back from a dismal 75-87 record.
Frazier remarked, “This is the biggest year of his career.” Frazier remarked, “Go behind everything. The biggest year is this one. I hope he makes a big impression.”