The first thing you notice when you look back at Mets‘ Edwin Díaz’s 2025 season is how clean it was. No drama. No wobble. No extended slump. Just dominance. The kind that makes teams rethink their entire bullpen structure because pitchers like that don’t come around often.
And now the New York Mets have to decide how far they’re willing to go to keep him.
Díaz wants security, and he’s earned the right to ask for it
According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, Díaz is seeking a deal that mirrors the average annual value of his last contract and stretches across five years at roughly $20 million per season. That’s a $100 million commitment for a 31-year-old closer, and while that number can make a front office sweat, the performance behind it is impossible to ignore.
Díaz just put up a 1.63 ERA over 66.1 innings, struck out 13.30 batters per nine, stranded over 86 percent of his baserunners, and kept the ball on the ground nearly half the time. It’s the exact profile you want closing tense games in September and October. It’s also the profile that brings other teams into the conversation — teams like the Blue Jays, who have money, motivation, and every reason to steal an elite closer.
As Heyman framed it: “Word is Díaz seeks a five-year deal for about the $20M salary of his previous deal, as The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reported. No one can blame him off his all-world 2025 performance. But a nice compromise would be a four-year arrangement at $20M-plus.”
That four-year compromise is likely where the Mets hope this lands.
The Blue Jays loom as a serious threat
Toronto makes sense as Díaz’s top alternative. They have a clear path back to the postseason, and their roster is built around high-level pitching and timely power. What they’re missing is the guaranteed shutdown arm at the back end. A pitcher who changes the mood of the stadium the second the bullpen door swings open.
Díaz would be exactly that. He would give Toronto the final piece to shorten games and protect narrow margins in a brutal AL East. If they press, they can make the Mets uncomfortable very quickly.
The Mets know this. They also know replacing their closer while simultaneously trying to rebuild the rest of the pitching staff is a dangerous game.
Cohen’s checkbook is the wild card — again
The Mets have no shortage of needs this winter. They want starters. They want bullpen help. They want a more athletic roster and more contact in the lineup. But even with that long checklist, letting a player as dominant as Díaz walk would cut directly against what they’re trying to become.
There’s no replacing his pitch mix, his presence, or the way he stabilizes a game. And for an organization that has spent the past two years trying to rebuild trust with its fan base, losing Díaz over contract length would be a tough sell.
This decision ultimately comes down to Steve Cohen’s appetite. If he’s willing to run a little hot on payroll, a four-year deal north of $20 million per year feels like a middle ground that keeps everyone happy. If not, the Mets risk watching an elite closer walk away for the second time in four seasons.
A choice the Mets can’t afford to get wrong
The Mets can’t lose ground in a winter when the rest of the league is getting better. Letting Díaz leave wouldn’t just open a hole — it would create a ripple that forces them into desperation moves, something they’ve spent months trying to move away from.
If the Mets are serious about competing in 2026, the clearest path starts with keeping their best pitcher right where he is.
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