Wednesday saw some of the final big names on the market find their homes for the 2025 season. While Alex Bregman caught most of the headlines, starting pitcher Nick Pivetta landed in San Diego after his five-year stint in Boston.

The right-handed starting pitcher, who the Mets showed interest in throughout the offseason, signed a four-year, $55 million deal with the San Diego Padres, per Jeff Passan of ESPN. The deal includes a pair of opt-outs and comes in the midst of trade rumors that continue to swirl around Padres starting pitchers Michael King and Dylan Cease. 

David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Latest Mets News

The Mets officially announced the Pete Alonso signing!

It seems as though the Mets are moving on without Jose Iglesias, as David Stearns stated, “Having some flexibility there in that role is frankly probably needed for us right now”, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.

The Mets agreed to a one-year deal with reliever Drew Smith, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. The deal includes a club option for the 2026 season.

Latest MLB News

All-Star third baseman Alex Bregman has agreed to a three-year, $120 million deal with the Boston Red Sox, per Chandler Rome of The Athletic. There are opt-outs after each season for Bregman.

Former Met Daniel Vogelbach has been hired by the Pittsburgh Pirates to be a special assistant to the hitting department, per Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 

Anthony Rendon‘s injury-ridden run continues. He will be missing a “long amount of time” as he is undergoing hip surgery, per Sam Blum of The Athletic.

Dodgers high-end relievers Michael Kopech and Evan Phillips are behind schedule and likely to start the season on the IL, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today. 

The Miami Marlins signed right-handed starting pitcher Cal Quantrill to a one-year major league deal, per Alden González of ESPN.

The Milwaukee Brewers signed LHP Tyler Alexander to a one-year deal.

Latest on MMO

Alex Bregman found his new home, the Boston Red Sox.

The Mets seem to be closing the book on the “OMG” era.

Drew Smith is coming back to Queens.

On This Date in Mets History

Born on This Date: Mike Nickeas (1983), Brian Rose (1976), Howie Rose (1954).

The post Morning Briefing: Nick Pivetta Signs With San Diego appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Good morning, Mets fans!

Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon has been suspended five games and fined an undisclosed amount by Major League Baseball for trying to hit a fan on Thursday night in Oakland. The confrontation occurred as the team was leaving the visiting dugout following their 2-1 loss to the A’s. Rendon heard the fan heckling him, which led to the situation escalating.

Rendon will appeal the suspension, and already had it reduced to four games, Jeff Fletcher of SoCal News Group reported.

Latest Mets News

Carlos Carrasco struggled mightily and the Mets’ bats couldn’t get anything going against Freddy Peralta as they dropped their series opener with the Brewers, 10-0. Carrasco threw 96 pitches in four-plus innings, getting charged with five runs on four hits and four walks. His fastball averaged just 91.1 miles per hour, the lowest he’s averaged in any start in his career. Tommy Hunter got roughed up too, giving up five hits and five runs, including a grand slam to rookie Brice Turang. The lone highlight for the Mets was Luis Guillorme tossing a scoreless inning of relief in the bottom of the eighth.

The Mets will look to bounce back with Max Scherzer (1-0, 4.50 ERA) on the hill for his second start of the year, facing off against southpaw Wade Miley. Scherzer was solid in his start against the Marlins on Opening Day, allowing three runs, four hits, and two walks with six strikeouts in six innings. First pitch is scheduled for 7:40 p.m.

Right-hander Jeff Brigham was placed on the injured list by Triple-A Syracuse on Sunday. That move leaves the Mets without any non-MLB relievers on the 40-man roster.

Jeff McNeil was honored by MLB.com, winning the Play of the Week presented by Chevrolet for his great hustle and throw to cut down a run in the fifth inning of Friday’s game in Miami.

Jeff McNeil flashed the leather to secure 2023's first Play of the Week presented by @Chevrolet. pic.twitter.com/o6o0r2ceRf

— MLB (@MLB) April 3, 2023

Latest MLB News

Michael Conforto hit his first homer of the season for the Giants in San Francisco’s 12-3 win over the White Sox. Deesha Thosar of FOX Sports spoke to the former All-Star as he seeks redemption with his new team.

Before the Angels and Mariners squared off Monday night, Shohei Ohtani and Ichiro Suzuki exchanged pleasantries in the outfield.

Los Angeles Angels' Shohei #Ohtani takes off his hat and bows to former Seattle Mariners player #Ichiro Suzuki before a baseball game Monday, April 3, 2023, in Seattle. For @AP_Images pic.twitter.com/hkQzsDd30R

— Lindsey Wasson 📸 (@lindseywasson) April 4, 2023

Latest on MMO

Chris Bello recaps the Mets’ series-opening loss to the Brewers.

Nate Mendelson gives us three takeaways from the Mets’ loss on Monday.

Rivka Boord publishes the first edition of 3 Up, 3 Down for the 2023 season.

On This Date in Mets History

1994: With the wind blowing out at Wrigley Field, Dwight Gooden surrenders three homers to Tuffy Rhodes, but the Mets bang out 16 hits, including four from Jeff Kent in a 12-8 win on Opening Day. Kent, José Vizcaíno, and Todd Hundley all go deep, and the Mets’ bullpen records the final 10 outs to seal the win.

2014: Lucas Duda hits two two-run homers and Jenrry Mejia allows just one run in six innings as the Mets earn their first victory of the season, 4-3 over the Reds. José Valverde puts two men on with one out in the ninth inning but gets Joey Votto to fly out and strikes out Jay Bruce to secure his first save as a Met.

2018: The Mets continue their strong start to the season, completing a two-game sweep over the Phillies with a 4-2 victory. Amed Rosario‘s two-run triple and Yoenis Céspedes‘ two-run homer provide all the Mets’ offense, and the bullpen throws five shutout innings after Noah Syndergaard exits.

Birthdays: Ron Locke (81), Tom Herr (67), Eric Valent (46), Cameron Maybin (36)

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Baseball Prospectus released their 2020 PECOTA projections, and not only are the New York Mets projected to win the National League East with an 88-74 record, but they are also viewed as the second best team in the National League. It should come as little surprise that they are quite behind the Los Angeles Dodgers who just acquired Mookie Betts and David Price.

Overall, the Mets are seen to have a 47.8 percent chance of winning the division and a 75.3 percent chance of making the postseason.

Looking deeper at the numbers, PECOTA views this as mostly a two-team race between the Mets and the Washington Nationals for the division. To that end, it is clear the projection model believes the Nationals have handled losing Anthony Rendon this offseason better than the Atlanta Braves did in losing Josh Donaldson.

What is interesting is PECOTA does not foresee the Philadelphia Phillies signing Didi Gregorius and Zack Wheeler in addition to hiring Joe Girardi as manager having all that much of an impact. In fact, the Phillies are seen as a worse team than the .500 team they were last season.

Now, it should be cautioned not to read too much into these projections.

As Baseball Prospectus explains, “PECOTA and our simulations do not ‘pick’ a team to ‘win’ any particular number of games. Rather, they identify an estimated range of games a team might win and tells you the average of that fairly wide range.”

This is also a work-in-progress as there will be updates as teams finalize their depth charts and rosters. This is important as PECOTA uses a combination of “3rd-order win percentages” and the good old fashioned eye test.

In the end, the biggest takeaway is this looks like a strong Mets team capable of making it to the postseason. In fact, with the team adding Dellin Betances to the bullpen and with the hoped rebounds from Edwin Diaz and Jeurys Familia, the Mets addressed one of the biggest issues which held them back last year.

If PECOTA is any indication, the Mets have solved their bullpen problems, and they are going to see a very strong pitching staff take the team to the postseason for the first time since 2016. As for the Dodgers projected to be the better team, we have seen what happens when Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, and Familia combine forces against the Dodgers in a postseason series.

The post PECOTA Projects Mets To Win NL East appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

According to Jon Heyman of MLB Network, the Angels have signed free agent third baseman Anthony Rendon to a seven-year, $245 million contract.

Rendon, 29, has spent his entire career with the Nationals, and has posted three 6-plus fWAR seasons in a row. He had probably the best season of his career in 2019, posting a 154 wRC+ and 7.0 fWAR while finishing third in MVP voting.

The Angels, who were also in on superstar Gerrit Cole, acquired another star talent to support the great Mike Trout on an Angels team that has struggled to wine even with the best player in baseball on their team. Signing a star like Rendon is definitely a huge step forward for them as they look to compete with the Astros in the AL West.

Rendon got the same exact deal in terms of years and money as his former teammate Stephen Strasburg, who recently re-signed with the Nationals. The deal is said to include no opt-outs, and his $35 million average annual value is the best for any position player aside from only his new teammate Trout.

There is also said to be no money deferred in the deal.

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Major League Baseball’s deadline for impending free agents to accept or decline their former team’s $17.8 million, one-year qualifying offers for 2020 passed at 5 PM ET on Thursday. Of the ten extended deals, just two players accepted.

As expected, Mets right-hander Zack Wheeler declined the qualifying offer. Brodie Van Wagenen told reporters on Thursday that he expects the Mets to continue having dialogue with Wheeler about keeping him in New York.

According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, Jake Odorizzi, 29, accepted the Twins’ qualifying offer to remain in Minnesota for one more season.

The right-hander pitched to a 3.51 ERA (3.36 FIP) with 178 strikeouts, 53 walks, and 1.21 WHIP over 30 starts (159 innings).

Jeff Passan of ESPN confirmed that Jose Abreu, 32, also agreed to his qualifying offer from the Chicago White Sox.

Over 159 games last season (693 plate appearances), the Cuban first baseman hit .284/.330/.503 with 33 home runs, and AL-leading 123 RBIs, and 38 doubles while being named to his third All-Star team.

Left-handed reliever Will Smith — extended a qualifying offer from San Francisco after pitching to a 2.76 ERA with 96 strikeouts and 21 walks in 65.1 innings with the Giants last season — declined and signed a three-year with the Braves just ahead of the deadline on Thursday.

The other seven players extended qualifying offers — right-handers Gerrit Cole, Stephen Strasburg, and Wheeler, left-hander Madison Bumgarner, third basemen Anthony Rendon and Josh Donaldson, and outfielder Marcell Ozuna — all declined their deals, as well, making them free agents.

As per MLB guidelines, if/when any of the above-referenced rejectees sign with a new team, their respective former teams will receive a compensatory pick in this year’s draft and, potentially, international pool money. They are still permitted to negotiate and sign a new contract with their old teams, as well.

We’ll keep you updated with any new information as it becomes available.

The post MLB News: Zack Wheeler Among 8 Players That Decline Qualifying Offer appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Major League Baseball announced its 2019 Silver Slugger Award winners during a live MLB Network telecast on Thursday night.

The award — presented by Hillerich & Bradsby, the manufacturer of Louisville Slugger baseball bats — has been given out annually since 1980 to the top offensive performers at each defensive position and designated hitter, as voted on by MLB managers and coaches.

Leading off — and a bit of a shocker, to boot — Atlanta’s Freddie Freeman (.295/.389/.549, 38 HR, 121 RBIs, 138 wRC+, 4.0 fWAR) beat out the Mets’ Pete Alonso (.260/.358/.583, 53 HR, 120 RBIs, 143 wRC+, 4.8 fWAR) for the Silver Slugger Award at first base in the National League.

In all fairness, Freeman had an outstanding, well-rounded offensive season. That being said, Alonso was the epitome of a slugger in 2019.

Cleveland’s Carlos Santana (.281/.397/.515, 34 HR, 93 RBIs, 135 wRC+, 4.4 fWAR) won at first base in the American League.

At second base, the Braves’ Ozzie Albies (.295/.352/.500, 24 HR, 86 RBIs, 117 wRC+, 4.6 fWAR) and the Yankees’ DJ LeMahieu (.327/.375/.518, 26 HR, 102 RBIs, 136 wRC+, 5.4 fWAR) were both honored for the first time.

Boston’s Xander Bogaerts (.309/.384/.555, 33 HR, 117 RBIs, 141 wRC+, 6.8 fWAR; third award) and Colorado’s Trevor Story (.294/.363/.554, 35 HR, 85 RBIs, 121 wRC+, 5.8 fWAR; second) won at shortstop.

In an impromptu World Series-themed segment of the show, Washington’s Anthony Rendon (.319/.412/.598, 34 HR, 126 RBIs, 154 wRC+, 7.0 fWAR; second award) and Houston’s Alex Bregman (.296/.423/.592, 41 HR, 112 RBIs, 168 wRC+, 8.5 fWAR; first) took home the hardware at third base.

Houston’s George Springer (.292/.383/.591, 39 HR, 96 RBIs, 156 wRC+, 6.5 fWAR; second award), Boston’s Mookie Betts (.295/.391/.524, 29 HR, 80 RBIs, 135 wRC+, 6.6 fWAR; third), and Los Angeles’ Mike Trout (.291/.438/.645, 45 HR, 104 RBIs, 180 wRC+, 8.6 fWAR; seventh) took home the honors in the AL outfield.

Their NL counterparts were Atlanta’s Ronald Acuna Jr. (.280/.365/.518, 41 HR, 101 RBIs, 126 wRC+, 5.6 fWAR; first), the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger (.305/.406/.629, 47 HR, 115 RBIs, 162 wRC+, 7.8 fWAR; first), and Milwaukee’s Christian Yelich (.329/.429/.671, 44 HR, 97 RBIs, 174 wRC+, 7.8 fWAR; third).

Behind the plate, Minnesota’s Mitch Garver (.273/.365/.630, 31 HR, 67 RBIs, 155 wRC+, 3.9 fWAR; first) and Philadelphia’s J.T. Realmuto (.275/.328/.493, 25 HR, 83 RBIs, 108 wRC+, 5.7 fWAR; second) won out.

Zack Greinke, formerly of Arizona, (.280/.308/.580, 3 HR, 123 wRC+, 1.0 fWAR; second award) won the NL honors on the mound and Texas’ Nelson Cruz (.311/.392/.639, 41 HR, 108 RBIs, 163 wRC+, 4.3 fWAR; third) won in the DH spot.

Stats via FanGraphs

The post Freddie Freeman Beats Out Pete Alonso For Silver Slugger Award appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

We have a lot to cover in our first installment of the offseason, so let’s jump right in, shall we?

As per Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports, ten players were extended respective one-year, $17.8 million qualifying offers from their previous teams; Josh Donaldson (Atlanta), Stephen Strasburg (Washington), Anthony Rendon (Washington), Gerrit Cole (Houston), Jose Abreu (Chicago White Sox), Jake Odorizzi (Minnesota), Madison Bumgarner (San Francisco), Will Smith (San Francisco), Zack Wheeler (Mets), and Marcell Ozuna (St. Louis).

As per the collective bargaining agreement, all QO’d players have 10 days to either accept or reject the offer. If they decline and sign with a new team, their former club receives a compensatory pick in next year’s draft.

Jeff Passan of ESPN reports that J.D. Martinez will not opt-out of his contract with the Red Sox this offseason, though he will have the option to do so again next offseason.

Scott Mitchell of TSN notes the Blue Jays could have an interest in 27-year-old Japanese first baseman/outfielder Yoshitomo Tsutsugo. Once posted by Yokohama of the JPCL, Tsutsugo (.272/.388/.511, 29 homers, 24 doubles, 79 RBIs, 557 PA in 2019) could be a hot commodity.

The Braves signed catcher Tyler Flowers and outfielder Nick Markakis to one-year, $4 million contracts after declining their 2020 team options, and also declined right-hander Julio Teheran‘s and outfielder Billy Hamilton‘s team options for next season, making them free agents.

The Phillies declined to pick up team options on right-handers Jared Hughes and Pat Neshek or left-hander Jason Vargas. They outrighted right-handers Jerad Eickhoff, Mike Morin, Blake Parker, and Edubray Ramos, as well as infielder Phil Gosselin, and announced that right-hander Jake Arrieta exercised his player option for 2020.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post confirmed that the Yankees did not extend Didi Gregorius a qualifying offer, sending the 29-year-old into free agency without a draft pick attached to him.

The Los Angeles Angels declined outfielder Kole Calhoun‘s option for 2020, making him a free agent.

The Twins declined left-hander Martin Perez‘ $7.5 million option for next season, instead choosing to buy him out ($500K), as per Darren Wolfson of KTSP.

The Brewers traded right-hander Chase Anderson to the Blue Jays for 24-year-old first-base/outfield prospect Chad Spanberger. Milwaukee also parted ways with first baseman Eric Thames and exercised their 2020 team option for backstop Manny Pina.

Toronto designated 32-year-old right-hander Ryan Tepera for assignment and outrighted second-baseman Devon Travis to Triple-A Buffalo, who can accept or reject the assignment, as per Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.

The Pirates exercised team options on center fielder Starling Marte and right-hander Chris Archer, as per a team announcement. Pittsburgh also outrighted right-handers James Marvel, Alex McRae, and Yefry Ramirez, as well as left-hander Wei-Chung Wang, off their 40-man roster.

The Padres designated right-handers Jacob Nix and Eric Yardley for assignment, outrighted infielder Seth Mejias-Brean to Triple-A El Paso, and right-hander Carl Edwards Jr. cleared waivers, making him a free agent.

The Reds outrighted infielders Christian Colon and Derek Dietrich, as well as right-handers Keury Mella and Jackson Stephens to Triple-A Louisville.

The Cubs exercised their 2020 club option on first baseman Anthony Rizzo and selected the contract of right-hander Colin Rea from Triple-A Iowa.

Cleveland outrighted right-handers Cody Anderson, A.J. Cole, and Danny Salazar, as well as left-hander Tyler Olson. All four elected for free agency.

San Francisco outrighted infielders Zach Green and Cristhian Adames to Triple-A Sacramento then re-signed both to minor league deals for 2020.

The post MLB Rumor Roundup: Free Agency Frenzy Begins appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

By Tim Ryder

The Major League Baseball Players’ Association announced the National League and American League finalists for their Outstanding Player award, voted on by the players themselves, in a press release on Thursday.

In the AL, Boston’s Rafael Devers, Houston’s Alex Bregman, and Los Angeles’ Mike Trout were nominated as finalists, with Milwaukee’s Christian Yelich, Los Angeles’ Cody Bellinger, and Washington’s Anthony Rendon honored as their NL counterparts.

Devers, 22, hit .361/.361/.555 with 32 homers, 115 RBIs, 132 weighted runs created plus, -6.0 defensive runs saved and 2.4 UZR/150 over 1,353 innings at third base, and 5.9 wins above replacement (FanGraphs) — good for eighth-best in the AL — for the Red Sox.

Bregman, 25, slashed .296/.423/.592 with 41 home runs, and 112 RBIs with 168 wRC+ and 8.5 fWAR (both second in the league) for the AL West-champion Astros. He racked up 7.0 DRS and 5.3 UZR/150 over 806.1 innings at third base and -2.0 DRS with -3.9 UZR/150 in 495 innings at shortstop.

Trout, 28, put together another outstanding season with the Angels, hitting .291/.438/.645 with 45 home runs, 104 RBIs, and AL-leading marks in wRC+ (180) and fWAR (8.6) over 134 games played. His -1.0 DRS and -1.2 UZR/150 ranked 13th and 17th, respectively, among qualified AL outfielders.

Yelich, 27, paced the NL with his entire slash line (.329/.429/.671), and his 174 wRC+ and 7.8 fWAR led the league, as well. His 44 home runs ranked third in the league. Over 1,093 innings in the outfield, Yelich notched -1.0 DRS and 2.5 UZR/150 (10th in NL).

Bellinger, 24, hit .305/.406/.629 with 47 homers (second in the NL), 115 RBIs, 162 wRC+, and 7.8 fWAR, tying Yelich for the league lead. Over 1,082 innings between right field and center field, Bellinger’s 22 DRS tied for second and his 13.7 UZR/150 ranked third among qualified NL outfielders.

Rendon, 29, slashed .319/.412/.598 with 34 home runs, 126 RBIs, 154 wRC+ (fourth in NL), and 7.0 fWAR (also fourth) for the NL-champion Nationals. The impending free agent put up 2.0 DRS and 2.0 UZR/150 over 1,265.1 innings at third base, both good for sixth in the league.

Respective league winners will be awarded $200,000 grants from the MLB Players Trust to be donated to the charity of their choosing. Voting results will be announced next week, as per the announcement.

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Pete Alonso may soon have another prestigious award under his belt.

Alonso is the Mets player nominated for The Hank Aaron Award. This is an annual award that goes to the best overall offensive performer in each league. Aaron is one of the judges of the award. He is accompanied by a panel of fellow Hall of Famers and the fan vote.

Alonso is up against players like Bryce Harper, Freddie Freeman, Christian Yelich, Anthony Rendon, Nolan Arenado and Fernando Tatis Jr.

The Mets have never had one of their players win this award. They are one of only ten teams without a Hank Aaron Award Winner.

That could change this year, as Alonso has made a strong case for himself this season. In case you need a reminder, he finished the season .260/.358/.583 with 155 hits, 53 home runs, and 120 RBI. He does have tough competition in his category, with players like Yelich finishing the season .329/.429/.671 and Tatis Jr. finishing the season .317/.379/.590. But, it’s not just solely about the numbers. The panel and fans have an impact.

You can vote for Alonso here. The winners will be announced during the World Series.

The post Pete Alonso Up For Hank Aaron Award appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

The Washington Nationals and Milwaukee Brewers will battle for the National League Wild Card Tuesday night. The winning team will advance for a chance to take the NLDS crown.

Nationals Lineup

1. Trea Turner– SS
2. Adam Eaton– RF
3. Anthony Rendon– 3B
4. Juan Soto– LF
5. Howie Kendrick– 1B
6. Asdrubal Cabrera– 2B
7. Kurt Suzuki– C
8. Victor Robles– CF
9. Max Scherzer– P

Brewers Lineup

1. Trent Grisham– RF
2. Yasmani Grandal– C
3. Mike Moustakas– 3B
4. Keston Hiura– 2B
5. Ryan Braun– LF
6. Eric Thames– 1B
7. Lorenzo Cain– CF
8. Orlando Arcia– SS
9. Brandon Woodruff– P

Game Notes

The Brewers won the season series against the Nationals, 4-2.

Tonight’s game will air on TBS and can be heard on WFAN.

The Nationals have a 53-31 home record this season, while the Brewers have a 40-41 record on the road.

The post Wild Card Game Thread: Nationals vs. Brewers, 8:08 PM appeared first on Metsmerized Online.