Mets bring back Fernando Salas

Salas received a $600K increase in salary from 2016

The Mets have agreed to re-sign pitcher Fernando Salas on a one-year, $3 million deal. According to Steve Adams of MLBTR, the hurler can earn an extra $350K in incentives. Salas started the 2016 year with the Los Angeles Angels, but was traded to the Mets on August 31 in exchange for prospect Eric Manoah. With New York, the reliever posted a 2.08 ERA in 17 appearances out of the bullpen. Additionally, he sported a 9.9 SO/9 ratio and, amazingly, did not walk a single batter in his entire Mets tenure. 

Once regarded as the St. Louis Cardinals' closer of the foreseeable future, Salas has been inconsistent over the past five seasons. However, since 2014, his career had begun to discover some stability. During that time period, he put up a combined 3.86 ERA in 204 appearances while posting a 2.1 BB/9 and 9.1 SO/9 ratio. 

Interestingly enough, Salas has had a decent amount of success against left-handed hitters in his career, holding them to a .239/.294/.383 clip. Conversely, right-handed batters have hit .225/.284/.393 in almost 900 total plate appearances. 

Right now, with the expected suspension of closer Jeurys Familia looming, the Mets will need Salas to play a key role in holding the bullpen together. Addison Reed will take over and be the team's temporary closer, leaving room for Salas to step in and and serve as New York's setup man. 

Let's take a closer look to see how Salas stacks up against his fellow relievers on the Mets. 

Career #’s	Salas	Reed	Robles	Goeddel	Lugo*	Wheeler*
v. RHP	.225	.242	.250	.212	.240	.225
v. LHP	.239	.235	.174	.216	.196	.259
BB/9	2.6	2.5	3.7	3.2	3.0	3.9
SO/9	8.9	9.6	10.0	9.0	6.3	8.5
H/9	7.8	8.2	7.2	7.1	6.9	8.1

 * Expected to begin the year in the bullpen

The one advantage that Salas has over players like Robles, Goeddel and Lugo is his experience in the bullpen. Robles remains a work-in-progress as he still needs to improve his control and develop a secondary pitch, while Goeddel has had issues with his health and being a consistent performer. 

For Lugo, it is expected that he will serve as the long-man out of the bullpen since he doesn't possess the "strikeout pitch" that teams often look for in their setup men. There lies Wheeler, who has been out of MLB action for two years now. The 26-year old will likely begin the 2017 season out of the bullpen as he looks to revamp his arm strength and return to throwing on a regular basis. Although it is unlikely, Wheeler could see an important role in the bullpen if he stays healthy and possesses the ability to command his pitches. 

Overall, the Salas signing was good work by Sandy Alderson. At $3 million, the price tag isn't too steep and still allows the club to take a hard look at other relievers who remain on the market. With the upcoming suspension of Jeurys Familia, Salas will have a good chance to serve as the team's setup man and reestablish his value in the process.