The New York Mets have officially pegged veteran left-hander José Quintana as their Opening Day starting pitcher.
Reports first started to surface about Quintana earning the nod earlier this month, right after ace Kodai Senga was shut down with a shoulder injury. Manager Carlos Mendoza confirmed the news when he spoke with the media Wednesday afternoon.
"I'll start by announcing that José Quintana will be our Opening Day starter in 2024," Mendoza said. "Obviously, this is a guy that's been in the league for a long time. He's one of those guys that competes, takes the ball, knows how to pitch and we like how he's bouncing back. We feel like the more that he goes through his progression, the stronger he feels. So we talked to him today and it was exciting news and a big day for all of us."
Quintana and the Mets will face off against Freddy Peralta and the Milwaukee Brewers on March 28.
The Mets signed Quintana to a two-year, $26 million deal in the 2023 offseason, although he didn't make his debut until July after undergoing hip surgery in Spring Training. When he did finally join the rotation, Quintana went 3-6 with a 3.57 ERA, 1.308 WHIP and 1.6 WAR in 13 starts down the stretch.
Quintana has enjoyed a healthy Spring Training so far this year, and he has already bounced back from a shaky Grapefruit League debut on Feb. 29. After allowing three walks and two earned runs that day, Quintana has trimmed his ERA down to 2.08 thanks to back-to-back scoreless outings.
Quintana, 35, last started on Opening Day as a member of the Chicago White Sox in 2017.
The southpaw spent the first six seasons of his MLB career with the White Sox, then suited up for the Chicago Cubs for the next four. In the two years before he signed with the Mets, Quintana pitched for four teams – the Los Angeles Angels, San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals.
For his career, Quintana is 92-93 with a 3.74 ERA, 1.279 WHIP, 1,592 strikeouts and a 28.0 WAR. He made one All-Star appearance back in 2016, when he also placed 10th in AL Cy Young voting.
Quintana will be the 30th different Opening Day starter in Mets history, dating back to 1962. Last year's No. 1 starter, Max Scherzer, got dealt to the Texas Rangers at the trade deadline, joining New York's three-time Opening Day starter, Jacob deGrom, in Arlington.
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