Former New York Mets pitcher Luis Severino on Friday shared just how much he had wanted to stay with the team during the offseason.
Severino signed a three-year contract with the Athletics in December following a bounce-back 2024 campaign with the Mets. He had a 3.91 ERA with 161 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.24 across 31 starts.
The Dominican right-hander spoke to reporters Friday before the Athletics’ three-game series against the Mets over the weekend. Severino was asked whether or not the Mets made him a legitimate offer to return.
“I don’t want to say they did,” Severino said. “But I was trying to stay with the Mets. I actually asked for less money to stay there. But like I said before, I was not in their plans. At the beginning, I was shocked. But at the end, I knew that it’s a business and they need to take care of other stuff.
“I told my agent. I asked for two years and $40 million. 20 [million] a year. I was getting 22 [million from the Athletics] for three years. I knew it was going to be less money.”
Luis Severino talked about his free agency and said he tried to stay with the Mets and asked for less money
— SNY (@SNYtv) April 11, 2025
"I told my agent I'd stay for 2 years & $40m. What my agent told me the only offer they were going to give me was the same deal they gave [Frankie] Montas (2 years, $34m)" pic.twitter.com/DKu86SqKGb
Severino cited his familiarity with the trainers and the environment in New York as a big reason why he had wanted to stay. Before his brief stint with the Mets, Severino spent the first nine years of his career with the New York Yankees.
Severino shared that the most the Mets were willing to offer him was a deal similar to the one they gave another former Yankees player, Frankie Montas. The Mets signed Montas a two-year pact for about $34 million.
In all fairness to the Mets, Severino’s big-money deal from the Athletics may have been due to factors beyond his performance on the mound.
