The New York Mets have such good pitching that it would be unfair to label this guy as the ace because it would be disrespectful to Matt Harvey, Noah Syndergaard and others, but Jacob deGrom is probably going to start Opening Day for the Mets.

deGrom is under the Mets control until 2020, so they will have him up until his age 31 season, which could mean that the possibility of an extension between deGrom and the Mets may not happen.

Despite the likely slim chance, deGrom is hoping to sign an extension with the Mets that would at least cover his arbitration years for sure:

“I’m a little bit older so I might be more willing to do something like that,’’ deGrom told The New York Post at Mets pre-camp. “You just have to look at what is fair so both sides get a decent deal. It’s something I’d have to look into and make sure I agree with it.’’

deGrom is 23-14 over his first two seasons in Major League Baseball with a 2.61 earned run average. He went 14-8 with a 2.54 earned run average last year.

“I haven’t thought that much about it and I have to talk to my agents and stuff and look at the numbers and decide what was favorable,’’ said deGrom.

If the Mets want to extend deGrom they should look at what the San Francisco Giants did with their ace Madison Bumgarner.

The Giants signed Bumgarner threw 2020 as well with team options existing for the 2018 and 2019 seasons. Bumgarner’s $12 million option in 2018 becomes guaranteed if he pitches 200-plus innings in 2017, or if he combines for 400-plus innings in 2016 and 2017.

The total deal that was signed looks like this: a six-year, $35.5 million deal. This was a very well structured contract by the Giants.

To me, this is something the Mets should look to do, and while the contract isn’t making Bumgarner filthy rich, he has plenty of incentives attached to the deal. Bumgarner’s team options go up to $14 million if he finishes top 3 in Cy Young voting between 2012-2017, and if he wins it between those years the options go up to $16 million.

For every all-star team he makes on his current deal, he will earn a $25 thousand bonus. This is very favorable for deGrom, especially because the Mets need to lock up so many guys over the the next few years, and Matt Harvey may be the hardest one to land.

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