By Sang-jin Oh= The myth of Chris Flexen’s (29) reverse export success is coming to an end.
“The New York Mets have traded right-handed pitchers Trevor Gott and Flexen to the Seattle Mariners for left-handed pitcher Zach Merkenhein,” MLB.com reported on Thursday (KST).
The Mets designated Flexen for assignment (DFA) immediately following the trade. The Mets wanted Gott to bolster their bullpen, and Seattle included him in the trade to relieve them of Flexen’s ransom.
Drafted by the Mets in the 14th round (440th overall) of the 2012 First-Year Player Draft, Flexen made his major league debut in a Mets uniform in 2017. In three seasons in the big leagues through 2019, Flexen went 3-11 with an 8.07 ERA in 27 games (11 starts) before signing a $1 million contract with the Doosan Bears in December 2019 to play in the KBO.
In the KBO, Flexen went 8-4 with a 3.01 ERA in 21 regular-season games and 116⅔ innings pitched, earning attention for his stellar performance in fall ball. In five postseason appearances, Flexen went 2-1 with a 1.91 ERA and one save to lead Doosan to the Korean Series.바카라사이트
After the 2020 season, Flexen returned to the United States, signing a two-year, $4.75 million contract with Seattle. In his first year back, Flexen went 14-6 with a 3.61 ERA in 31 games as a starter, making him a reverse export from the KBO. Last year, he split time between the starting rotation and the bullpen, going 8-9 with a 3.73 ERA in 33 games (22 starts). With 317⅓ innings over two years (179⅔ in 2021 and 137⅔ in 2022), Flexen reached his 300-inning option, triggering his $8 million vesting option for 2023.
This season, however, Flexen has struggled, going 4-4 with a 7.71 ERA in 17 games (four starts). Seattle DFA’d Flexen on May 28 and traded him to the Mets on May 4 to pick up his salary. The hometown Mets immediately DFAed Flexen, taking on only about $3.9 million in remaining salary. After being DFA’d by the Mets, Flexen will be assigned to the minors or be eligible for free agency if no team is interested in signing him within a week.