Category: MLB

Welcome to Thursday. Cody Bellinger is Yankee. Freddy Peralta is a Met. Yoán Moncada is an Angel again for some reason. Hurrah.

Today on the site, Josh will offer his thoughts on Cody Bellinger’s new contract, Peter will spotlight the late Brian Dayett for our Yankees Birthdays series, and Matt will open an unfortunate page from franchise history by remembering the ill-fated Kei Igawa signing. Michael will also delve into Hall of Fame voting trends and determine if this year’s boost in balloting means that Andy Pettitte could make it to Cooperstown before his BBWAA eligibility expires in two years.

Questions/Prompts:

1. Acknowledging up front that it’s possible that Milwaukee just preferred the Mets’ system to the Yankees’, would you have wanted the Yankees to trade someone like George Lombard Jr. to get Peralta?

2. There was plenty of discussion yesterday on the site, but do you have any further thoughts on Cody Bellinger returning now that you’ve had a chance to think about it some more?

The 2026 MLB season begins on March 25. That's little more than two months away, and while everyone assumes the Los Angeles Dodgers are destined to three-peat, the bright side is that everyone is already looking to 2027 and beyond.

Looking so far ahead is difficult though. We don't know how players will age. We don't know what trades or free agent acquisitions will be made. We don't even know whether or not there will be a lockout when the current CBA expires on Dec. 1 this year.

The only decent indication we have of each team's future is their farm system. The teams with the best farm systems often become the best teams in the league soon after. The Chicago Cubs had one of the best in the league prior to their World Series title in 2016. The Tampa Bay Rays were near the top for much of the transition between the 2010's and 2020's. The Baltimore Orioles had the best for several years before finally breaking through in 2024, even if they fell apart just one year later.

So, looking ahead to the second half of the decade, which teams are set for contention? Here's every MLB team's farm system ranked from worst to best entering the 2026 season.

Phillies remain intent on parting ways with Nick Castellanos originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

“Change of scenery” has been the phrase used by Phillies officials when discussing Nick Castellanos this offseason.

On Tuesday, Dave Dombrowski reaffirmed that direction, confirming the organization remains committed to moving on from the veteran outfielder before the season begins.

“Yes, we do. We still plan on doing that,” Dombrowski said. “And we did designate Weston Wilson for assignment today. But yes, that would be the plan.”

Castellanos, 33, is entering the final season of his five-year, $100 million contract and is owed $20 million in 2026. A trade remains the preferred outcome, but the remaining salary complicates the market.

If Philadelphia is going to move him in a deal, it would require eating a great majority of what he is owed.

Assuming the club is unable to find a trade partner, designating Castellanos for assignment would be the procedural step required to remove him from the 40-man roster and formally move on.

Castellanos’ performance dipped again in 2025. He finished the season with a .250/.294/.400 slash line and 17 home runs, producing a -0.6 WAR, one of the lowest marks in the Majors.

A DFA would give the Phillies seven days to trade Castellanos or place him on waivers. Given the $20 million remaining on his deal, a waiver claim would be unlikely.

If he cleared waivers and was released, Philadelphia would remain responsible for roughly $19.25 million of the contract, while any new club would owe only the prorated league minimum. The roster spot would open, but the salary would remain on the Phillies’ books.

Still, it would be surprising if a team that misses out on its preferred outfield or DH options doesn’t at least explore Castellanos as a lower-cost add, especially if the Phillies are willing to cover a large portion of the deal.

He has not yet been designated for assignment, but Dombrowski’s comments left little ambiguity about the club’s intentions.

From the depths of December to the jolt of activity over the last five days here in January, David Stearns turned a disappointing offseason into one that offers reason for even the most disgruntled fans to believe 2026 could be a good year, after all.

With the trade for top starter Freddy Peralta from the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday night, Stearns made what is likely to be his last high-impact acquisition of the winter, and in doing so obtained the top-of-the-rotation starter the Mets desperately need to be considered genuine contenders again.

On the heels of the signing of Bo Bichette and the trade for Luis Robert Jr., the Peralta deal completes a whirlwind week for Stearns that changes the perception of the offseason and presumably makes it safe for him to go out for dinner in the big city without being heckled by Mets fans.

Noticed I said presumably.

Hey, I get it, there are still going to be fans out there who aren’t happy with Stearns, and to some degree Steve Cohen, for essentially cleaning house and allowing Pete Alonso and Edwin Diaz to walk away while also trading Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil.

In the case of Alonso, especially, it will be fascinating to see whether Stearns was right in choosing not to offer him more than a three-year deal, as well as how much the Mets will miss his power bat in trying to win a championship over the next few years.

But what’s more relevant at the moment is that, after a seemingly endless wait this offseason, at least Stearns made the big-splash moves that should ensure the Mets of being contenders next season. Actually, they should be talented enough to battle the Philadelphia Phillies and the Atlanta Braves for the NL East title if they get some key turnarounds from veteran pitchers to go with Peralta and Nolan McLean.

So why now? Why the sudden flurry of activity? Was it simply the market moving to an inevitable conclusion for the likes of Kyle Tucker and Cody Bellinger that led to the signing of Bichette and the trade of Robert Jr.?

Or, to put it another way, was this always the plan, waiting to mid-January to throw huge money at the likes of Tucker and Bichette, or did the outrage of Mets fans over losing Alonso and Diaz reach such a crescendo that Cohen, in particular, decided he needed to react and flex his financial muscle to stem the tide?

“Steve can certainly be reactive to situations like that,” said one person who knows Cohen on a personal level, more as the hedge-fund billionaire. “He’s very aware of public perception in everything he does.”

So it’s possible he ordered the Code Red, if you will, that finally jump-started the Mets’ offseason. Yet, to be fair, it’s also possible that the timing of the big moves coincided with Stearns’ plan to wait for the prices on both free agents and trades to fall enough to warrant sudden activity.

“The offseason has a life of its own,” was the way an executive from another team put it Wednesday night. “I’d lean toward believing the Mets waited until they felt the time was right, and then one move leads to another move and so forth.”

Whatever the impetus, the additions of Bichette, Robert Jr., and Peralta all filled important needs for the Mets and are impactful enough to make the case that the Mets now have a better team than they did before this offseason began.

For that matter, with Bichette being introduced at Citi Field on Wednesday, some 12 hours after Stearns swung the deal to gamble on Robert Jr.’s high ceiling in center field, Stearns decided to have a Michael Corleone kind of day and settle all family business of sorts by making the trade for Peralta on Wednesday night.

Again, why now? Was it because he decided Framber Valdez wasn’t going to settle for a high-AAV, three-year deal?

Were the Brewers running out of suitors and thus lowered their asking price on Peralta?

“The Mets weren’t giving up (Brett) Baty, I can tell you that,” one person close to the deal said. “That may have been a sticking point at least for a while.”

Whatever, in giving up Brandon Sproat and Jett Williams, the Mets still paid a high price, considering they’re only guaranteed one year of Peralta, who can be a free agent next winter -- though they also received Tobias Myers, who should be a useful bullpen arm.

And while it could give the Mets a chance to lock up Peralta to a long-term deal if he adapts to New York and is pitching well next season, he could also be something of an afterthought in that regard if the Mets decide they’re going all-in on Tarik Skubal.

Still, I think Stearns made the right move. Jonah Tong has a higher upside than Sproat and was likely more desired by the Brewers, and while Williams is a blue-chip prospect, he doesn’t have anywhere to play in the Mets’ infield, where he is considered best-suited. Especially since the Mets see Baty as a valuable utility man, having proven athletic enough to play second base last season, even while blossoming into a very good third baseman.

And finally, while Stearns surely was all business in making the trade, you couldn’t blame him if he has a soft spot for Peralta. In his first trade as Brewers GM, in December of 2015, Stearns dealt veteran first baseman Adam Lind to the Seattle Mariners for a package of young players, including Peralta, then a 19-year-old in rookie ball.

He was a lottery ticket then who paid big dividends for the Brewers, and now Stearns brings him to the Mets with high expectations. At age 29, turning 30 next June, Peralta is coming off the best season of his career, as he pitched to a 2.70 ERA and threw a career-high 176.2 innings over 33 starts.

That averages out to 5.1 innings a start, which is the only knock against him, according to one scout I spoke to.

“His fastball is electric and he can dominate any lineup when he’s commanding his off-speed stuff to go with it,” the scout said. “But he needs to go deeper into games to really be an ace. He tends to be a little too fine at times and because of that, his pitch count elevates. But he’s also a guy you feel good about putting out to start a postseason game.”

Playoffs? Did he say playoffs?

A week ago, many Mets fans were bracing for the worst next season, convinced Stearns’ value-driven approach would doom them to fourth place in the NL East.

And there are still plenty of questions about the ’26 Mets, to be sure. But I have to believe most fans are now willing to give Stearns -- and Cohen -- credit for turning the offseason of dismay into at least some level of success.

Begrudgingly or otherwise.

The Milwaukee Brewers have traded pitcher Freddy Peralta to the New York Mets for a pair of top prospects.

The addition of Peralta adds an ace to the Mets' pitching rotation and the move is expected to help keep New York competitive in the National League East, after finishing 13 games behind the Philadelphia Phillies for the top spot in the division in 2025.

The Mets' pitching staff showed early signs of dominance in 2025, leading the league with a 2.32 ERA ... before the team collapsed in the second half and missed the postseason with an 83-79 record.

The team finished out the final 92 games with a 38-54 record. Kodai Senga dealt with injuries, which limited his availability. Clay Holmes made the transition to a starter after spending time coming out of the bullpen.

Well options are beginning to dwindle for the Braves to add another impact player this offseason. They have a stated desire to add to their starting rotation and Framber Valdez is still out there on the market (though would cost a draft pick to sign), but the market has been moving for the last couple weeks and Spring Training is rapidly approaching. There are still options on the trade market and that has perhaps felt like the area that Anthopoulos would make his move. Freddy Peralta is no longer available, as he was sent to the Mets, but there are a number of other options of varying qualities that could be had on the trade market.

Braves News

We heard from Andruw Jones after he reached the voting threshold to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

MLB News

The Mets traded two top 100 prospects for one year of Freddy Peralta from the Brewers. While this should meaningfully help the Mets this year, that’s a pretty wild package for one year of a good but not elite pitcher, even on an incredibly cheap contract.

The Yankees re-signed Cody Bellinger to a large 5 year deal with opt-outs.

The Angels re-signed Yoan Moncada to a 1 year, $4 million deal.

The MLB owners will reportedly make a very strong push for a salary cap this upcoming CBA negotiation, but there is substantial skepticism that they will get it or that games will be missed.

FanGraphs | Ben Clemens: By now I’m sure you know that Cody Bellinger is staying in the Bronx, with a cool five-year, $162.5 million deal. The reunion with the Yankees felt near-inevitable with, with such a glaring hole in the club’s construction and Bellinger unable to get someone to stretch his deal out to six or seven years. The Yankees retain a strong floor for 2026, even if the ceiling of the team is up for debate.

New York Daily News | Peter Sblendorio: For more details on the Bellinger deal, look no further. It’s far from a standard MLB deal, with a pair of opt outs and a $20 million signing bonus that works as essentially an insurance policy should we see baseball games lost to 2027 labor strife. Bellinger’s now the third-highest paid Yankee, and the appropriate pressure will no doubt be felt. For the team, the estimated total payroll for 2026 is now $317 million, the third-highest in baseball after the Dodgers and Mets (whose payroll rose again at least a bit after trading for Freddy Peralta), or about $10 million more adjusted for inflation than the 2009 championship team’s player expenses.

New York Daily News | Gary Phillips: In other news, Andy Pettitte saw his Hall of Fame vote share jump significantly this time around, his eighth time on the ballot. The longtime Yankee lefty received votes on 48.5 percent of submissions, the fourth-highest vote total behind inductees Carlos Beltrán and Andruw Jones, as well as Chase Utley. This represents a 20-point jump over Andy’s 2024 vote count, and with two more years of eligibility remaining, there’s still a real chance the five-time World Series champion sees himself in Cooperstown.

Baseball America: BA is out with their top 100 prospect list, considered by many to be the most reliable compendium of future MLB stars. Four Yankees find themselves in the rankings, with George Lombard Jr. atop the team’s table at No. 46 overall. Elmer Rodriguez, who we will likely see with the big league club at some point in 2026, is ranked 59th, with 2025 first-rounder Dax Kilby at 61st, and right-hander Carlos Lagrange just making the cut at 96.

Where there was smoke came fire. It just took a few extra days for the Mets.

Six days after Steve Cohen took to X to make a joke about the Kyle Tucker sweepstakes — invoking a papal conclave joke that set social media ablaze — before the Dodgers ultimately beat out New York for his services, the Mets owner took to the platform again on Wednesday night to show his excitement over the game-changing events that transpired over the last 24 hours.

After making the Bo Bichette signing official and trading for White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. on Tuesday night, the Mets continued a huge week on Wednesday by agreeing to a deal with hard-throwing reliever Luis Garcia and then trading for Brewers right-handers Freddy Peralta and Tobias Myers.

“What an incredible week. Let’s go Mets !” Cohen wrote on X in the moments after the team made the trade with Milwaukee official.

Last Thursday, Cohen gave social media plenty of fodder when he posted “Let me know when you see smoke,” as the Tucker proceedings came to a head shortly before he signed a four-year, $240 million contract with Los Angeles.

About 12 hours after the Mets’ $220 million bid fell short, they poached infielder Bo Bichette on a three-year pact — right as it looked like the Phillies were going to land him on a long-term commitment.

The trades have come fast and furious this week, with the team getting Roberts — a 2023 All-Star outfielder — along with Peralta and Myers in deals one day apart.

Peralta, 29, gives the Mets a bona fide ace and is coming off a career year with a 2.70 ERA and National League-leading 17 wins. He has thrown at least 165 innings in each of the last three seasons and over 173 in the past two.

With the two trades, the Mets have sent away four young players, three of whom are still prospects.

Utilityman Luisangel Acuña and minor league pitcher Truman Pauley went to the White Sox, while pitcher Brandon Sproat and infielder/outfielder Jett Williams got dealt to Milwaukee.

Freddy Peralta will have some new digs to get used to pitching in and some teams that he will be seeing more often of following a late-night trade to the Mets on Wednesday. 

The right-hander was dealt from the Brewers to the Amazin’s in a deal that also sent Tobias Myers to Queens, in exchange for prospects Brandon Sproat and Jett Williams. 

The move means the two-time All-Star will be toeing the slab much more at Citi Field this year compared to how often he’s pitched there previously in his eight years in the major leagues. 

The righty has only taken the mound in Flushing twice in his career, both of which have come in the past two seasons. 

In all, Peralta has a 2-0 record with a 2.25 ERA and 14 strikeouts at Citi Field. 

His first appearance in Queens came in a 3-1 win by the Brewers on March 29, 2024. He went six innings and allowed just one run. Peralta’s second start came on on July 2, 2025, in a 7-2 drubbing of the Mets. 

The move to the Mets also means Peralta is going to become quite familiar with the National League East. 

He already has some familiarity with the division, having faced the Braves, Marlins, Nationals and Phillies a combined 36 times.

The starter has five wins against the Braves over eight starts while posting a 4.26 ERA.

Peralta’s 3.12 ERA against the Phillies is the best mark he holds against an NL East team, though he has an 0-2 record in seven starts. 

He has a 3-4 record against the Marlins with a 4.03 ERA and 58 strikeouts and a 5.82 ERA against the Nationals with 41 strikeouts. 

The acquisition added to a busy week for the Mets, which included signing  Bo Bichette and adding Luis Robert Jr. in a trade with the White Sox. 

“What an incredible week. Let’s go Mets!” owner Steve Cohen posted on at Citi Field on Wednesday night following the Peralta deal.

It’s Wednesday evening here at BCB After Dark: the coolest spot for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. We’re so glad you decided to stop by. Come on in out of the cold. There’s no cover charge this evening. We still have a few tables available. The hostess can lead you to your table. Bring your own beverage.

BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.

Last night I asked you about infielder/left fielder Miguel Andujar, who was linked to the Cubs in at least one report. I was pretty skeptical about signing him (even though I think he’s a solid player) because I didn’t see the fit. The majority of you agreed, as 68 percent of you were against the idea.

Here’s the part with the music and the movies. The second round of the BCB Winter Science Fiction Classic is coming to a close. But as always, you’re free to skip ahead to the baseball stuff at the end. We’re OK with that.

For those of you who like showtunes, tonight we have vocalist Jordan Fisher performing “Pure Imagination” from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Emmet Cohen is on piano. Peter Martin plays keyboards, Tivon Pennicott is on tenor sax, Yasushi Nakamura is the bassist and Joe Farnsworth is on drums.

(Fun fact: My wife hates that movie. She hated it as a child and she hates it today. Her well-meaning sister gave her a blu-ray copy of it for Christmas one year and she had to pretend that she liked it.)

This is a brand new video released just yesterday.

You voted in the BCB Winter Science Fiction Classic and there are a lot of Star Trek fans among my readers. I guess there are a lot of Star Trek fans among people who write here as well. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan advanced over the number-one seed, Blade Runner. As I had written, Blade Runner is the one film that gets mentioned most often as the best science fiction film of all time if you don’t pick 2001: A Space Odyssey. But you like Kirk, Spock, McCoy and especially Ricardo Montalban as Khan.

Tonight we are going to the final quadrant of our tourney, the “modern” bracket, to finish out the second round. Number-two seed Brazil (1985) goes up against Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991).

2. Brazil. (1985) Directed by Terry Gilliam. Starring Jonathan Pryce, Robert De Niro and Katherine Helmond.

Here’s what I wrote last time about Brazil.

3. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991). Directed by James Cameron. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton and Robert Patrick.

Here’s what I wrote last time about Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Both films are terrifying in their own way. Brazil scares me with its portrait of a totalitarian world where the rich live lives of pointless conspicuous consumption. The rest of us live in a world desensitized to the capricious violence and cruelty of the state and that the only way to survive is to remain as anonymous as possible.

While I’m not worried about time-traveling killer robots, I sure as heck am worried about the artificial intelligence future that created the nightmare future of Terminator 2.

So now it’s time to vote.

You have until Monday to vote. Coming up on Monday is the final matchup of the second round, where The Matrix takes on Back to the Future.

Welcome back to everyone who skips the music and movies.

Earlier this week I asked you if you thought the Cubs should improve their pitching depth by signing Zac Gallen. I suppose it’s not quite right to say that Gallen would “improve depth” because he’d probably be one of the better pitchers in the rotation. But it would mean that other pitchers would move down the pecking order and provide more depth.

One pitcher on the free agent market who would improve the Cubs’ depth but has gotten very little attention for some reason is right-hander Chris Bassitt. Bassitt has been as solid of a pitcher over the past five years that you could ask for. He just finished a three-year, $63 million deal with the Blue Jays where he made over 30 starts every year and pitched over 170 innings every year. He posted a Fangraphs WAR of between 2.3 and 2.6 in all three seasons with the Blue Jays. In fact, according to Fangraphs, Bassitt has had a WAR above two in every season since 2019, not counting the shortened 2020 season. But he pitched well in 2020 too.

I haven’t heard the Cubs connected to Bassitt at all, but I have heard people arguing that Bassitt is a better pitcher than Zac Gallen. He did indeed have a better 2025 season than Gallen, although we’ve been over that 2025 may be an outlier bad year for Gallen. Bassitt also is a more extreme ground ball pitcher, which plays in to the Cubs strong infield defense. He probably would also cost a lot less than Gallen.

I’ll add that Bassitt pitched very well in the postseason last year for the Blue Jays as well.

So why is Gallen so much more highly regarded that Bassitt? For one, age is a huge factor. Bassitt is heading into his age 37 season whereas Gallen is going into his age 30 season. As he ages, Bassitt’s fastball velocity is dropping. He only averaged 91.4 miles per hour on his fastball last season, which is down from 92.7 the year before and definitely down from the 94 mph or so he threw when he was young.

Bassitt also struggles with left-handed pitching a lot more than Gallen does. While their overall results are similar, Bassitt is the type of pitcher you might want to skip against a lefty-heavy lineup. However, since the Cubs have several good left-handers, that might not be as big of a problem for the Cubs.

Bassitt also has some experience pitching out of the pen, so if he’s not one of the top five or six starters on the Cubs, he could become a long man in the bullpen.

So basically, Bassitt would serve as an upgrade on Colin Rea, if you think he’s better than Colin Rea.

Bassitt’s age actually plays in well for the Cubs in that he’s probably not going to get more than a one-year deal at this point. I’m proposing a one-year, $17 million deal for Chris Bassitt? If you were running the Cubs, would you make that offer?

Thank you for stopping by tonight and all week. We really appreciate your patronage. Please get home safely. Stay warm out there. Recycle any cans and bottles. Tip your waitstaff. And join us again next week for more BCB After Dark.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Padres fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

The worst kept secret of the offseason is the San Diego Padres do not want to add significant money to their payroll. Reports surfaced after Nolan Arenado was traded from the St. Louis Cardinals to the Arizona Diamondbacks the Padres were involved in the trade discussions for the third baseman, but they wanted the Cardinals to pay more of Arenado’s salary. The Diamondbacks will pay him $11 million for the next two seasons.

It was recently reported that San Diego president of baseball operations and general manager A.J. Preller was considering additions to his roster but was not ready to make a move. At the time the thought was Preller was waiting for the asking prices of free agents to drop and/or he needed to trade away some of the money already on the roster to create financial flexibility. We may never know what he was waiting for, but we can speculate.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athleticreported earlier this week that some potential free agent pitchers the Padres might target are Lucas Giolito, Nick Martinez or Justin Verlander. An addition of one of those players is not going to send the Friar Faithful into a frenzy, but it may be all we have to look forward to.

Lucas Giolito

Giolito is a 6-6, 245-pound 31-year-old right-hander from Southern California. Maybe he wants to return home and pitch close to family and friends in San Diego. He spent the 2025 season with the Boston Red Sox and pitched in 26 games, finishing with a 10-4 record with a 3.41 ERA over 145.0 innings. Giolito spent the bulk of his major league career with the Chicago White Sox and holds a career 4.30 ERA. It should ne noted that Giolito did not pitch in 2024 because he had surgery to repair his right elbow ulnar collateral ligament in March of that year.

Nick Martinez

Padres fans are very familiar with Martinez, 35, and what he can bring to the rotation. He spent two years in San Diego in 2022 and 2023 before signing with the Cincinnati Reds as a free agent. He spent 2024 and 2025 with the Reds and threw 165.2 innings. He appeared in 40 games and 26 of those were starts. Martinez finished 11-14 with a 4.45 ERA. Preller does not typically bring former players back, unless it’s in a front office or coaching role as we have seen with manager Craig Stammen or developmental coach Wil Myers, but considering the need for pitching he might make an exception with Martinez.

Justin Verlander

Verlander and his career speaks for itself. He is a sure-fire Hall of Famer and despite being 42 years old, he still wants to pitch and keeps getting opportunities. Verlander spent 2025 with the San Francisco Giants and started 29 games. He finished with a 3.85 ERA over 152.0 innings, but his final record of 4-11 was not what you expect from a player of his stature. Of course, wins and losses are not solely on the pitcher, so perhaps a season in San Diego with a solid defense behind him would flip the record.

If we are to believe the reporting of Rosenthal, which I will admit is difficult to do due to his constant praise for the Los Angeles Dodgers and his unconfirmed disdain for the Padres, which one of Giolito, Martinez or Verlander would you, the readers of Gaslamp Ball, want San Diego to sign?

Results of the poll will be published later this week.

David Stearns said early Wednesday that he was still looking to acquire a frontline starter this offseason. 

Just hours later, the Mets' President of Baseball Ops was able to deliver. 

According to SNY analyst and SiriusXM's Jim Duquette, Stearns was considering multiple options, but talks heated up with his old club, and he was able to complete a deal to bring ace RHP Freddy Peralta from Milwaukee to Queens.

He had to pay a hefty price with top prospects Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat heading to the Brewers, but it’s certainly worth it to acquire one of the top arms available on the trade market.

“Acquiring Freddy brings another established starter to help lead our rotation,” Stearns said in a statement. “Throughout this offseason, we sought to complement our rotation with another front-end pitcher, and we’re thrilled we are able to bring Freddy to the Mets.”

Peralta is coming off one of the best seasons of his career, in which he finished fifth in National League Cy Young voting after leading the league in wins (17) and finishing fourth in ERA (2.70). 

The two-time All-Star has made 30+ starts each of the past three seasons. 

And he isn’t the only piece being acquired in the deal.

The Mets were also able to grab an intriguing arm with control, bringing in RHP Tobias Myers, who has accumulated a 3.15 ERA in 49 games the past two seasons. 

Myers is much more than just a throw-in, as he provides Carlos Mendoza with a steady piece for the bullpen and even more rotation depth. 

“Tobias has become an extremely valuable Major League pitcher,” Stearns said. “His ability to pitch out of both the rotation and bullpen allows him to help our team in multiple ways. His addition adds to another quality, young major league arm to our organization.”

Owner Steve Cohen certainly seems amped about the moves as well…

What an incredible week. Let’s go Mets !

— Steven Cohen (@StevenACohen2) January 22, 2026

The Mets needed an ace, but it did not come cheap.

The Amazin’s, who acquired right-handed starter Freddy Peralta and 27-year-old reliever Tobias Myers from the Brewers, had to ship off top prospects Brandon Sproat and Jett Williams to Milwaukee in the Wednesday night deal.

Sproat and Williams were two of the six prospects the Mets had on Baseball America’s list of the top 100 prospects in the sport, which was released Wednesday.

The 25-year-old Sproat — the 81st prospect on the Baseball America list — was part of the Mets’ young pitching brigade, along with Nolan McLean (No. 8) and Jonah Tong (No. 44), called up in the second half of last season in hopes of giving the team a jump-start in their push to the playoffs.

Sproat had a 4.79 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 20 ⅔ innings across those four MLB starts after posting a 4.24 ERA in 26 Triple-A appearances.

But the Mets did not have to give up McLean, a third-round pick in 2023 who is expected to have a spot high in the rotation this season.

McLean made eight big-league starts last season, going 5-1 while posting an impressive 2.06 ERA. He also recorded 57 strikeouts in 48 innings, while displaying a fastball in the upper 90s to go along with a diverse pitching arsenal.

The Mets also moved on from Williams, a 22-year-old first-round pick in 2022 who is a middle infielder and center field prospect.

He hit .261 with an .828 OPS, 17 homers, 52 RBIs and 34 steals in 130 games across Double-A and Triple-A in 2025 and was working toward getting a call to the big club.

But when the Mets acquired Luis Robert Jr., an elite defender in center field, in a trade with the White Sox on Tuesday night, that made Williams more expendable.

Carson Benge at No. 19 and outfielder/second baseman A.J. Ewing at No. 83 are the other two Mets prospects in the Top 100.

Freddy Peralta will give the Mets an ace in the hole, but the other right-hander New York is acquiring from the Brewers could also be valuable.

As part of the trade that is sending outfield/infield prospect Jett Williams and pitcher Brandon Sproat to the Brewers, the Mets are also getting pitcher Tobias Myers on Wednesday night.

Myers, 27, made his big league debut in 2024 and has pitched as both a reliever and starter.

But his professional career has been a long and winding one, going back all the way to 2016 when he was drafted in the sixth round by the Orioles.

He was then traded three separate times — including in a late 2021 deal that sent Junior Caminero to the Rays — and spent time with Tampa Bay, the Guardians, Giants and White Sox.

Myers eventually landed in the Brewers organization in 2022 before getting his first taste of big league action two years later.

In 27 games (25 starts) in 2024, Myers thrived with a 3.00 ERA and 127 strikeouts in 138 innings.

He notably got the start in deciding Game 3 of the wild-card series against the Mets that season, tossing five scoreless innings with just two hits allowed. The Mets won the game in memorable fashion, though, on the back of Pete Alonso’s three-run homer in the ninth inning off Devin Williams, who, ironically enough, is going to be in the back end of the Amazin’s bullpen after he signed a three-year contract earlier this offseason.

Myers pitched 16 of his 22 games in 2025 in relief and carried a 3.55 ERA and 1.36 WHIP.

In 18 games as a reliever in his MLB career, Myers has been exceptional with a 1.62 ERA and 0.84 WHIP, fanning 27 hitters. He has kept his walk rate down out of the bullpen, too, issuing just three passes in 33 1/3 innings.

He has six pitches in his arsenal: fastball, splitter, cutter, slider, changeup and curveball.

Though Myers’ heater — which he deployed 45 percent of the time in 2025 — is 1.5 mph slower than the average big league fastball, it appears like a rising fastball to hitters, making it trickier to hit.

The splitter was a new pitch he added last season, and the opposition hit just .108 against it.

As far as his contract situation, Myers has team control through the 2028 season.