The Mets are adding another intriguing arm to their bullpen, signing hard-throwing right-hander Shintaro Fujinami, reports SNY's Andy Martino.
The deal is for one year and $3.35 million.
Fujinami, 29, struggled for the Oakland Athletics and Baltimore Orioles in 2023 during what was his first MLB season after 10 seasons pitching in Japan.
He made seven starts and 57 relief appearances but will work in relief with the Mets, per Martino.
After being traded to the Orioles in the middle of July, Fujinami fared a lot better than he did in Oakland (8.57 ERA), with a 4.85 ERA (4.13 FIP) and 1.21 WHIP to go along with 32 strikeouts in 29.2 innings over 30 appearances.
With Baltimore, Fujinami lowered his walk rate from 5.5 per nine to 4.6, and allowed just 21 hits.
He has an arm you can dream on with a fastball that averaged 98.4 mph last season and topped out at 101. Fujinami also features a sweeper.
Batters hit .243 with a .385 slugging percentage against Fujinami's four-seam fastball in 2023 but did better against his split-finger fastball, slugging .451.
With Fujinami on board following the recent addition of Adam Ottavino and the signing of Jake Diekman, the Mets' bullpen is taking shape.
It will be led by the returning Edwin Diaz, includes a few reliable late-inning arms, and has a couple of high-upside plays.
Here's how it could look on Opening Day:
Edwin Diaz
Brooks Raley
Adam Ottavino
Jake Diekman
Drew Smith
Shintaro Fujinami
Jorge Lopez
Michael Tonkin