Forget the slow burn. The New York Mets just hit the gas pedal, and the rest of the National League East better find a mirror. David Stearns didn’t come back to Queens to play with prospect spreadsheets and “maybe next year” platitudes. By shipping off Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat for Freddy Peralta and Tobias Myers, the Mets essentially told the baseball world that 2026 is the target. It’s a gamble that smells like champagne.
Sure, losing Williams and Sproat stings the pride. Williams is sitting pretty inside the top 50 on some of the newest prospect lists, and Sproat remains a high-velocity arm that scouts drool over. But prospects are just lottery tickets until they actually cash. Stearns knows the Milwaukee roster better than anyone, and he didn’t blink when it came time to pull the trigger on his former ace.
Freddy Peralta isn’t just a rotation filler. We are talking about a guy who went 17-6 with a 2.70 ERA last season, finishing fifth in the Cy Young race. He led the National League in wins. He punched out 204 batters in 176.2 innings, marking his third consecutive season clearing the 200-strikeout bar. That kind of consistency is a rare bird in today’s game.
On Saturday, Peralta was already out there on the bump for live batting practice. He looked sharp. He looked ready. He stood alongside Clay Holmes and Jonathan Santucci, showing the kind of presence you expect from a guy entering his contract year. Peralta told SNY the session went really well, and he looked every bit the part of the missing piece.
The Price of Winning Now
Let’s be real about the cost. You don’t get a top-tier starter like Peralta for a bag of balls and a PTBNL. Giving up Williams, who plays with the spark of a Jose Altuve, is a heavy price for any farm system. Sproat, despite some struggles and a 4.79 ERA last season, still has the raw stuff that makes pitching coaches look like geniuses.
But flags fly forever, and potential doesn’t win divisions. Peralta is 29 years old and heading into the prime of his life. He skipped the World Baseball Classic with the Dominican Republic this spring specifically to focus on his preparation for New York. That is the kind of professional focus this roster needs.
The deal also brought in Tobias Myers, a guy who is much more than a footnote. Myers was a savior for the Brewers’ staff last year, putting up a 3.15 ERA over nearly 190 innings since he first hit the bigs. He can start, he can bridge the gap in long relief, and he gives the Mets the kind of depth that usually disappears by mid-July.
The Contract Question
There is a $140 million elephant in the room. Peralta is currently playing on an $8 million team option, which is essentially daylight robbery for a pitcher of his caliber. He hits free agency in November, and fans dream about a multi-year extension to keep him in Queens.
Steve Cohen hasn’t been shy about spending, but Stearns has been cautious about long-term deals for pitchers. Still, you don’t trade your top prospects for a one-year rental unless you plan on being the last team standing. Peralta’s ability to stay healthy and take the ball 30 times a year makes him the perfect candidate for a long-term anchor.
New York is a different beast than Milwaukee. The lights are brighter, and the boos are louder. Peralta has the stuff to dominate, but he has to prove he can handle the weight of the pinstripes. If Saturday’s session was any indication, he isn’t sweating the pressure one bit. It isn’t, though, but he’s just getting started.
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