The New York Mets kicked their off-season into gear on Tuesday and Wednesday, adding three all-star players in less than 24 hours.
And the latest addition was perhaps the biggest after the team swung a blockbuster deal for Milwaukee Brewers ace Freddy Peralta.
The trade, which also saw righty Tobias Myers come to New York in exchange for star prospects Brandon Sproat and Jett Williams, gives the Mets the top-of-rotation arm they had sought all off-season.
Peralta reportedly was pursued by several clubs, most notably the Los Angeles Dodgers, which likely drove up the return for Milwaukee.
He is a two-time all-star coming off a stellar season in which he led the National League in wins with his 17-6 record and also posted a 2.70 ERA in 33 starts.
He also is one of just two MLB pitchers with at least 200 strikeouts in each of the past three seasons – new Blue Jays starter Dylan Cease is the other.
When it comes to his current contract, it’s a good news/bad news situation for the Mets.
What’s the catch with Freddy Peralta?
While Peralta will be a bargain at $8 million this coming season, he is in the final year of his contract and is set to become an unrestricted free agent.
“Acquiring Freddy adds another established starter to help lead our rotation,” Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said in a statement. “Throughout the 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.”
Who else have the Mets added?
The trade for Peralta came just hours after the team trotted out its biggest free-agent signing of the off-season, former Toronto Blue Jays all-star Bo Bichette, for an introductory press conference.
During the event, Bichette touted how excited he was to play for the National League contender.
“I’m excited to be here and excited to be a Met,” Bichette said at his introductory press conference. “(I had) several good conversations with teams, but with a lot of prayer and conversations with my family and agents and friends came to the conclusion that it was very obvious I wanted to be a Met.”
Just hours after officially announcing the signing of Bichette on Tuesday night, the Mets swung a trade with the Chicago White Sox to bring in another former all-star, Luis Robert Jr.
The 28-year-old outfielder made the AL all-star team in 2023 during a season in which he finished ninth in the majors with 38 home runs.
However, he has struggled throughout the past two seasons, partly due to injuries. He missed 94 games over the past two years and hit a total of just 28 home runs over that span. His batting average has also fallen each year since the 2021 season, hitting a career low of .223 last season.