Jacob deGrom mets
Robert Edwards | USA TODAY Sports

WFAN Sports Radio host Joe Benigno joined the “Tiki and Tierney” midday program Monday for his weekly rant about the Jets, who suffered a 27-12 loss to the Bengals Sunday. But he couldn’t depart the show without a few choice words regarding his beloved baseball team, the Mets.

The Mets are in the midst of a divisional race despite already clinching their first postseason berth since 2016. With the Braves only 1.5 games back, every game has been a must-win for New York, including a clunker against the A’s this past Saturday where Jacob deGrom allowed five earned runs in four innings amid a crushing 10-4 loss.

“You don’t want to get me started on deGrom. I wouldn’t give this guy a dime. Goodbye. Go,” Benigno ranted. “They’ve got a lot of free agents they got to re-sign — I don’t trust this guy one iota…remember, he gave up a three-run home run to tie the game against Pittsburgh [back during a Sept. 18 win]. Then he goes up against this crummy Oakland team in a game they’ve got to have and he you-know-whats the bed.”

“I’ve had it with him. They’ve got a lot of guys to re-sign — I wouldn’t give him a dime. Go pitch for the Texas Rangers, I don’t care. Sign [centerfielder Brandon] Nimmo, sign [closing pitcher Edwin] Diaz, sign [starting pitcher Chris] Bassitt. Sign these guys, forget about deGrom.”

deGrom has allowed at least three earned runs in each of his last three starts, which has shot his ERA up to 2.93 (it was 1.66 following a Sept. 7 shutout win over Pittsburgh, deGrom’s last victory). The right-hander’s innings-pitched count has also gradually decreased in each of his last four starts. He pitched seven innings against the Pirates on Sept. 7 before pitching six, five, and four innings over the next three starts.

If owner Steve Cohen doesn’t want to bring deGrom back for the 2023 season, he doesn’t need to. The Mets could still form a dominant rotation with the likes of Max Scherzer (under contract for two more seasons), Bassitt, and Taijuan Walker (if he exercises his player option). DeGrom has a significant injury history from the past two seasons, which could make retaining him on a lucrative new deal too risky, regardless of how fat Cohen’s pockets may be.

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Ryan Honey is a staff writer and host of the Wide Right Podcast.