New York Post - USA (2020-12-03)

New York Post, Thursday, December 3, 2020

nypost.com

ANOTHER

SHOT: Steven

Matz finished

the 2020 season

with a career-

worst 9.68 ERA

and was

removed from

the starting

rotation, yet the

Mets reached a

one-year, $5.2

million deal with

the left-hander

on Wednesday.

N.Y. Post: Charles

Wenzelberg

By Dan MaRtin

Steven Matz will get his chance to

revive his career in Queens.

The Mets and the 29-year-old left-

hander agreed to a $5.2 million con-

tract on Wednesday, as Matz avoided

arbitration following a nightmarish

2020 season.

Matz made six starts and three re-

lief appearances, finishing 0-5 with a

9.68 ERA in the COVID-shortened

season and leaving some to wonder

whether the Mets would bring him

back at all, given that he was likely

due a small raise from the $5 million

he would have made in a full year

last season.

Matz lost his spot in the starting

rotation and went on the injured list

with left shoulder discomfort. But in

spite of Matz’s struggles, he has had

stretches when he’s been very good,

and with new owner Steve Cohen’s

deep pockets, the Mets can now af-

ford to keep a popular reclamation

project around.

The Cohen-led Mets made their

first significant free-agent splash

this week by signing Trevor May to a

two-year, $15.5 million contract in a

deal the team announced Wednes-

day. The right-hander will provide a

boost to a bullpen, and the signing

could indicate an aggressive outlook

on free agency.

While Robert Gsellman — once

considered a potential fixture in the

rotation — was also tendered a con-

tract and could compete for a relief

role, the bullpen lost a left-hander

when Chasen Shreve was non-ten-

dered.

The 30-year-old Shreve was

mostly effective for the Mets, espe-

cially against lefties.

The Mets also tendered a contract

to Jacob Barnes, whom they claimed

off waivers from the Angels in Octo-

ber, as well as outfielder Guillermo

Heredia, who appeared in seven

games after being selected off waiv-

ers from the Pirates in August.

Right-handers Paul Sewald and

Nick Tropeano were not tendered

deals.

Where Matz will fit in the Mets’

plans remains to be seen and likely

will be determined by how the rest

of the offseason goes.

The Mets have Jacob deGrom and

Marcus Stroman at the top of the ro-

tation, with Noah Syndergaard re-

covering from Tommy John surgery.

Then there’s the inexperienced

David Peterson, the recently signed

Sam McWilliams and not much else.

Trevor Bauer, the NL Cy Young

Award winner, is the top free-agent

pitcher available, but Masahiro Tanaka

and Jake Odorizzi are also on the mar-

ket and could provide starting depth.

As for Matz, the Mets hope he can

rediscover the stuff he had earlier in

his career, when the Long Island na-

tive made a brilliant six-start debut

late in the 2015 season followed by a

solid year in 2016, when he finished

with a 3.40 ERA in 132 ¹/₃ innings.

In 2020, he had a career-worst

WHIP of 1.696 and his home-run ratio

soared to 4.1 per nine innings. If Matz

can regain the form he showed even in

2019, when he had a 4.21 ERA in 160 ¹/₃

innings, he’d likely be of value.

The Mets had bigger plans for the

former second-round pick out of

Ward Melville on Long Island, and

perhaps a full season will help.

[email protected]

Mets re-sign lefty despite ugly ’20

LeBron staying put

in LA through ’23

LOS ANGELES — LeBron James has

agreed to a two-year, $85 million contract

extension through the 2022-23 season with

the Lakers.

James’ agent, Rich Paul of Klutch Sports,

confirmed the deal Wednesday during the

first week of training camp for the NBA

champions. The Lakers are still finalizing

their new contract with big man Anthony

Davis, who is also represented by Paul.

James is getting the maximum deal to ex-

tend his tenure in Los Angeles, where he

moved two seasons ago after his second

stint with his hometown Cavaliers. Davis

and James teamed up last season and won

the Lakers’ 17th championship in the bubble

in central Florida. — AP

RUSSELL

WESTBROOK

JOHN

WALL

By KRistie RieKen

HOUSTON — Russell Westbrook

is headed to the Wizards and John

Wall is moving to the Rockets in a

significant swap of point guards —

one an MVP, the other a No. 1-overall

draft pick — just weeks before the

season starts.

The Wizards also shipped a future

lottery-protected first-round pick to

the Rockets on Wednesday night.

While Wall has played his entire

professional career in the nation’s

capital, the move ends Westbrook’s

tenure in Houston after just one dis-

appointing season. He arrived from

Oklahoma City in July 2019 for Chris

Paul and draft picks.

The Rockets had hoped that the 32-

year-old Westbrook would be the fi-

nal piece they needed to win their

first title since winning back-to-back

championships in 1994-95. But in-

stead, Houston was eliminated from

the playoffs by the eventual cham-

pion Lakers in the Western semifi-

nals. Westbrook was the 2017 NBA

MVP and is a nine-time All-Star, but

has failed to win a title.

Many questioned whether the pair-

ing of two ball-dominant guards like

Westbrook and James Harden would

work in Houston, but the longtime

friends insisted that it would. After

the Rockets were sent home from the

playoffs early again, rumors started

to swirl that the two weren’t happy in

Houston and both wanted out.

This move could be new general

manager Rafael Stone’s way of ap-

peasing Harden so the Rockets can

continue their quest for a title this

season instead of rebuilding without

the superstar. Stone was promoted to

GM last month after Daryl Morey

stepped down before quickly taking a

job with the 76ers.

The Westbrook-Wall deal works

under the NBA’s rules because the

two players are owed about the same

amount: Each gets more than $80

million over the next two seasons,

plus each has a player option of more

than $45 million for 2022-23.

And both were looking to move on.

— AP

Westbrook, Wall swapped in blockbuster