Lefty Mets Veteran Seeking New Environment as Free Agent

New York Mets left-handed starter Jose Quintana is searching for a new home after becoming a free agent earlier this month. Quintana turns 36 on January 24th, and the former All-Star looks to continue playing following his quality performance in late August and averaging 4.35 strikeouts a game in 2024. For the season, he also sported a 10-10 record with a 3.75 ERA, 135 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.250 across 170 1/3 innings pitched in the regular season. With Quintana’s late stretch of success in the 2024 regular season, it is evident that he still has some gas left in him to help a team push for a World Series title next season.

Quintana was also proven to be clutch in the postseason early in October, helping the Mets beat the Philadelphia Phillies in game four to advance to the NLCS. Earlier in his career, he spent time with the Chicago White Sox, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Angels, San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates, and St. Louis Cardinals. In 2016 with the White Sox, Quintana earned his first All-Star selection. His primary and most effective pitch is the sinker which hits the strike zone about 58 % of the time according to Baseball Savant. While Quintana is sometimes overlooked because of his low strikeout ability, he remains a well-grounded back-end starter. This offseason, Quintana will be training with Driveline where he will work on enhancing his arsenal and strikeout rate.

Former All-Star Jose Quintana Seeking New Home as Free Agent

Potential Landing Spots for Quintana

Kansas City Royals

According to CBS Sports journalist R.J. Anderson, the Royals are a candidate for landing the Colombian/American starter. “Quintana has pitched in the majors for parts of 13 years now. Just once, back in 2021, has he finished a season with an ERA+ below the starting pitcher average. He doesn’t have high-octane stuff, to put it kindly, but he locates well and used his four-pitch arsenal to good enough effect.” Quintana would provide a veteran arm for the Royals, who are looking for starters this offseason.

Chicago Cubs

One of the Cubs’ top priorities aside from the bullpen this offseason is acquiring a starter for their rotation. Could a reunion for Quintana be on the table? In his career with the Cubs, he owns a 33-23 record with an ERA of 4.24 and 420 punchouts. Quintana also made history with the Cubs back on August 13th, 2019. He became just the second pitcher in franchise history to strike out 14 batters while pitching six innings or less. Quintana joined Kerry Wood, who accomplished the same success on April 27th, 2001 against the San Francisco Giants.