PHILADELPHIA, PA - JUNE 25: Dellin Betances #68 of the New York Yankees delivers a pitch in the seventh inning during a game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on June 25, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Yankees won 4-2.
(Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images)

Merry Christmas, New York Mets fans. The Mets are giving fans the gift they wanted most this offseason, Dellin Betances.

According to Andy Martino of SNY, the New York Mets have to come to terms with free-agent reliever and former Yankee Dellin Betances. According to Jeff Passan of ESPN, it’s a one-year deal but will also include two player options. Meaning, the deal could last as long as three years.

Jon Heyman of MLB Network is reporting that Betances will make $7.5 million in 2020. Betances’s player option for 2021 is worth $6 million. If the right-hander doesn’t exercise his player option, it would trigger a $3 million buyout. So, Betances is guaranteed at least $10.5 million.

This is a huge signing for the Metropolitans. Their bullpen was a huge issue for them in 2019 and the righty hurler brings a long track record of success in a variety of bullpen roles.

Since making his full-season debut in 2014, Betances has only had one season with an ERA over three. In that one season, 2016, Betances had an ERA of just 3.08. He has only had a FIP over three once in his career as well. That came in 2017 when he had a 3.22 FIP.

Nobody questions Betances’s ability coming out of the bullpen. The issue teams had with him was his health after suffering two major injuries in 2019.

He had a bone spur in his right shoulder that kept him out for nearly the entire season. When he finally did get back late in September, he only pitched two-thirds of an inning before he suffered a partially torn Achilles.

If Betances is healthy and ready to go in 2020, the Mets just made a huge move to contend. If he’s not, this contract could become an albatross considering the player options attached.

A contributor here at elitesportsny.com. I'm a former graduate student at Loyola University Chicago here I earned my MA in History. I'm an avid Mets, Jets, Knicks, and Rangers fan. I am also a prodigious prospect nerd and do in-depth statistical analysis.