WFAN host blasts Mets for regressing to Wilpon years

Despite having baseball’s richest owner in Steve Cohen, the Mets are regressing to the Wilpon years, intimated WFAN host Brandon Tierney on Thursday.

At this point in 2021 and 2022, New York signed three-time Cy Young Award winners Max Scherzer (three years, $130 million in 2021) and Justin Verlander (two years, $86.7 million in 2022) each to the richest contract by AAV for a pitcher — $43.3 million per year each. On Wednesday, it was reported that they were finalizing a deal for ex-Yankees pitcher Luis Severino , an injury-prone starter coming off of his worst season in MLB.

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“It’s the Wilpon Mets all over again. We can sit here and joke, but the Mets are back to the Wilpons,” said Tierney, via Audacy .

“They’re gonna make a move for Yamamoto. I don’t think they’ll get him, but I think they try to make the move...right now, Severino is your third starter. Do you want him pitching against the Braves, or in Philadelphia in that bandbox?”

Since emerging as the ace of the Yankees staff in 2017 and 2018, Severino, 28, has struggled to stay healthy. The two-time All-Star posted a 41-25 record in his first 96 games (85 starts) with a 3.51 ERA and 572 strikeouts over 518 innings, 9.9 strikeouts per nine innings.

Since then, he’s spent six different stints on the injured list, including an extended leave after undergoing Tommy John surgery in June 2020. Since returning in 2021, Severino has appeared in 42 games (37 starts) and has a 12-11 record with a 4.65 ERA and 199 strikeouts over 197.1 innings, 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

This season, Severino hit rock bottom.

In 19 games (18 starts) he posted career worsts in ERA (6.65), WHIP (1.65), strikeouts per nine (8.0), hits per nine (11.4) and home runs per nine (2.3). His 4-8 record is his worst since 2016 when he went 3-8 in 22 games (11 starts).

As it stands, Severino joins a Mets rotation that includes Kodai Senga and José Quintana . They are still in the market for pitching and have been linked to ace Yashinobu Yamamoto , who was recently awarded with Japan’s equivalent of the MVP for the third consecutive year.

Until the Mets sign Yamamoto, Tierney isn’t buying the idea of Cohen being a real difference-maker for the team.

“King Cohen my ass,” Tierney said. “Until the Mets actually do something good, they’re gonna stink this year.”