Mets re-sign Edwin Díaz to record contract

One of the most pressing issues facing the Mets this offseason has been solved on day one. The team reportedly re-signed Edwin Díaz to a five-year, $102 million contract today, the first day of the offseason. The Mets reportedly viewed Díaz as their primary free agent target, and they locked him up before he could even officially reach free agency.

When official, this will be the first six-figure contract given to a reliever in the history of baseball, and the first reliever contract with an AAV north of $20 million as well. Díaz also reportedly has a full-no trade clause in the deal and a player opt-out after the third year, to boot.

Five years and $102 million is a lot to commit to any reliever, but the 29-year-old earned every bit of it with his stellar 2022, which ranks among some of the best relief pitching seasons of all-time. Díaz posted a 1.31 ERA across 62.0 innings and struck out over half of the batters he faced all year long, becoming just the third pitcher in baseball history to accomplish that feat in at least 50 IP. His 3.0 fWAR led all relievers in 2022.

Díaz was as important to the Mets success in 2022 as anyone, as he converted his final 22 save opportunities dating back to May and did not allow a home run after May 12th. His stellar pitching and his “Narco” entrance song turned him from a source of angst for Mets fans in previous years to one of the most popular players on the team this season. The fanbase really embraced Díaz in 2022, and he embraced them back, and now he’s staying in Queens for many more seasons.