Justin Verlander, Mets agree to two-year, $86 million deal: report

The New York Mets have reportedly reached a deal with AL Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander. 

Days after reportedly meeting with the team via Zoom, the New York Post reported Monday that Verlander agreed to a two-year, $86 million deal with a vesting third-year option.

The 39-year-old Houston Astros ace returned from Tommy John surgery to lead the organization to its second World Series championship, posting an MLB-best ERA of 1.75 while going 18-4. 

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He entered free agency last month a three-time Cy Young Award winner, becoming the 11th player in MLB history to win it three times.

Verlander opted out of his contract with the Astros in the offseason, declining his $25 million player option that came about after he threw over 130 innings during the 2022 MLB season.

“I don’t know what the future holds,” Verlander said at the time. “I don’t want to sit here and say I won’t be back. I’m not going to sit here and pretend to know. The market will dictate itself. Jim [Crane] understands that.

“There’s a lot of people interested in my services, including the Astros, and we’ll see what happens.”

News of the deal comes just after two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom agreed to a $185 million, five-year contract with the Texas Rangers, parting ways with Mets after nine seasons.

He’ll earn $30 million next year, $40 million in 2024 and 2025, $38 million in 2026 and $37 million in 2027 – but deGrom could earn up to $222 million over six seasons because of a pair of conditional options. 

Verlander will earn $43 million in annual salary, just behind teammate Max Scherzer’s $43.3 million. 

Fox News’ Joe Morgan and The Associated Press contributed to this report.