Edwin Diaz will reportedly parlay a dominant season into a historic payday.
According to USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale, the star closer is on the verge of signing a five-year, $102 million deal to stay with the New York Mets. That contract would make Diaz the highest-paid reliever in MLB history.
Aroldis Chapman was MLB’s highest-paid reliever with an $18 million salary in 2022. He set a reliever record when signing a five-year, $86 million deal with the New York Yankees in 2016.
Nearly unhittable for most of 2020, Diaz posted a 1.31 ERA in 62 innings. He struck out over half of his batters faced, and his 42.6 strikeout minus walks percentage was nearly 10 points higher than runner-up Andres Munoz.
Before the 2019 season, the Mets acquired Diaz in a trade with the Seattle Mariners. The deal initially looked ill-fated for the Mets, as Diaz authored a 5.59 ERA in his first season while Robinson Cano came with a bloated contract and outfielder Jarred Kelenic rose up prospect rankings for Seattle.
However, Diaz dominated for a Mets team that won 101 games last season. If this reported move is any indication, owner Steve Cohen will spare no expense to build a World Series contender in Flushing.
He’ll have to keep his wallet open to maintain other key players. Outfielder Brandon Nimmo is a free agent, starting pitcher Chris Bassitt declined his player option, and ace Jacob deGrom will likely also opt out.
Sounds the trumpets. Mets fans could hear Narco over the Citi Field speakers through 2027.