John Flanigan/MMO
Earlier this week, it was reported that the Mets had agreed to terms with many players on the roster who were not eligible for arbitration yet, except for one.
That one player was the newly acquired Edwin Diaz as both he and the team submitted figures and were unable to agree to terms, resulting in the Mets simply renewing his contract for $607, 425.
Diaz, 24, was part of the Mets’ blockbuster deal that also brought back Robinson Cano in exchange for Jarred Kelenic, Justin Dunn, Jay Bruce, Anthony Swarzak, and Gerson Bautista.
The 2018 saves leader could have made this a bigger issue, but instead appears to not be holding any grudges towards the Mets organization, as detailed by Dan Martin of the New York Post.
“I think this is a business. They have their decision and I have my decision. Everybody’s happy. We’re at a good point right now.”
While he obviously is going to be underpaid in 2019, that doesn’t seem to bother him as he only remains focused on himself and his ability to succeed.
“I can’t say I feel bad with the team. I can control what I do on the field. They made that decision. That’s fine. I just put up numbers and play for my team. My agency tried to protect me and I think they made the right decision.’’
Other high profile players on the team have dealt with similar disputes with the Mets as the team decided to go the same route with Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard in the past, both of whom were represented by current GM, Brodie Van Wagenen, while he was working at CAA.
In 73 games (73 1/3 innings) last season, Diaz appeared in 73 games while recording a 1.96 ERA, 0.791 WHIP, and 1.61 FIP to go along with 124 strikeouts and 57 saves.
The Mets will be hoping for him to put up similar numbers this season and beyond as the team will control him through the 2022 season, with Diaz hitting arbitration starting after the 2019 season.
