Back in February, we semi-jokingly referred to Chris Flexen as the best signing of the MLB offseason. We say semi-jokingly because while the exercise was tongue in cheek, Flexen did look like a smart pickup by Seattle.
He’s been as good as expected.
Expected by FanGraphs, I mean.
Much better than he was expected to be by the market.
The Mariners were able to sign Flexen, a 26-year-old returning from a solid season in the KBO after struggling over parts of three seasons for the Mets, for just $4.75M over two guaranteed years, with a club option for a third year at a similarly affordable rate. He’d managed a 2.74 FIP and a 3.01 ERA over nearly 120 innings in Korea. There was reason to believe in him, but few did, so the Mariners took a flyer on him, and now that’s working out. He’s got a 4.12 ERA. He’s made 12 starts and averages over five and a half innings per start. In his last outing, he held the Twins scoreless over eight innings, striking out eight and walking none. His xERA’s up at 4.37, but that’s serviceable, and his 3.79 FIP is good for a 1.2 mark in the fWAR column.
It’s possible the Mariners have ambitions of a playoff run in these next two years. Even if they do, though, they might be better served trading Flexen than keeping him. After all: How much better could he reasonably get? And in a market starved for starting pitching, his price as an affordable, under-contract 26-year-old putting up solid numbers for the second straight year might never be higher than it will be a month from now.
Oh, and his spin rate? Very consistent.
