The Mets have a third new arm for their starting rotation this coming season.
Sean Manaea saw an uptick in velocity last year and success with a new pitch.
The Mets are now banking on the left-hander being able to translate that into a full good season or two for the club.
Manaea agreed to a two-year contract worth $28 million with an opt-out after this season, The Post’s Jon Heyman first reported on Sunday.
Manaea, 31, pitched to a 4.44 ERA in 31 appearances in a swingman role last season for the Giants.
Overall he pitched 117 ²/₃ innings and recorded 128 strikeouts.
The addition comes 2 ½ weeks after the Mets missed on their top offseason target, Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who received a 12-year deal worth $325 million from the Dodgers.
The Mets also pursued Lucas Giolito, who signed a two-year deal worth $38.5 million with the Red Sox.
Last season, Manaea averaged 93.6 mph with his four-seam fastball, according to Statcast — an increase of more than 2 mph from the previous year.
Manaea’s increased torso rotation in his workouts with Driveline Baseball last winter is credited for helping him improve his velocity.
Manaea also added a sweeper that he threw 10.4 percent of the time, against which opponents hit only .140.
The changes seemed to click for Manaea in the second half last season, when he pitched to a 3.43 ERA over his final 17 appearances after he struggled in the first half, posting a 5.49 ERA in 20 appearances.
Manaea, a former Indiana State standout, has also pitched for the Athletics and Padres during an eight-year major league career.
Manaea’s deal represents the first multiyear contract the Mets have issued this offseason.
He joins newcomers Luis Severino and Adrian Houser in a rotation that also includes Kodai Senga and Jose Quintana.
The Mets also have depth options in Tylor Megill, Jose Butto and David Peterson (who is expected to miss at least the first two months of the season rehabbing from hip surgery).
Severino received a one-year contract worth $13 million, which was the Mets’ largest outlay this offseason before Manaea’s agreement.
Houser is arbitration eligible and projected to receive a contract in the $5 million-$6 million neighborhood.
As it stands, Senga and Manaea are the only pitchers from that group with guaranteed contracts beyond the coming season.
The flexibility will provide team officials with an opportunity to evaluate pitchers within the organization that can possibly be pieces for 2025 and beyond, following what figures to be a retooling year for the Mets following last summer’s teardown in which prospects were acquired for veteran players.
But with a format that also allows teams just above .500 to compete for the postseason, the Mets aren’t ignoring the upcoming season.
To that end, the team could still use another bat after the additions of Harrison Bader, Tyrone Taylor and Joey Wendle that will potentially upgrade the team defensively.
Justin Turner and Jorge Soler are among the names on the free-agent market that could make sense for the Mets in the DH role.
If the Mets signed Turner, he could also enter into a third-base mix that appears unsettled.
Brett Baty and Mark Vientos are the third basemen heading into spring training after another candidate for the position, Ronny Mauricio, underwent surgery for a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and isn’t expected back before September.
Vientos and DJ Stewart are the primary DH options on the roster.
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