Jerry Blevins on Edwin Diaz “The truth is that I honestly don’t care how it’s going to age in year five because you’re paying for years one, two, three and possibly four. That’s what it’s going to take to get the best. He is by far the best pitcher on the market. He fits so well in New York”…
26 comments
NGL id rather have Rogers AND Finnegan over just diaz. Look at the world champs. They didnt even have a closer. Just stack your team with good arms and whoever is reliable can close
Damn, I read the quote and thought that we signed him last night.. totally agree with Blevins.
I’m rarely in the “gotta bring him back under any circumstances” category, but Diaz deserves it.
This is how we should be approaching PEte Alonso and Diaz
I agree with Jerry. When the richest owner in sports just got a casino license approved, I don’t want to hear about the money, Spider-Man. It’s all about the Mets. Get it done.
Hes 100% right any other take is wrong
I know we kind of got burned year 1-2 of his last deal, and Diaz has enough history of being an every other year kind of pitcher, but I hope we can find a compromise and retain him even though it’s likely only the first couple years will be to par for him.
funny enough I feel like I’m getting deja vu with the above, feel like I said this stuff 3 years ago
Blevins is rocking some fun NES memorabilia
You pay him what he wants and for five years. Period
And that’s why Jerry is an analyst and not a FO Exec. Yeah we’re all, “GIVE DIAZ WHAT HE WANTS NOW!” but by 2028 this sub will be up in arms when he’s completely cooked and still on the books for another 2+ years.
You have Soto in his prime . We’re win now
And he’s right. You need that lockdown closer
100% agree.
If Díaz regresses enough at the end of the contract, then you make him a 7th or 8th inning guy, or move him with some money.
Don’t lose a guy like this because you don’t want to figure out what to do 4 years from now.
Not so hot take: this signing takes precedence over Alonso
seconded.
Yeah that’s pretty much why some fans don’t care about going 5 years. Pretty much every good free agent gets overpaid in years and money. Thats just the cost of doing business. Having Diaz 32-37 does not scare me. Chapman is still effective at age 37. And if he isn’t effective later then whatever. It’s Steve Cohen’s money and the Mets need pitching. Btw Jerry Blevins definitely knows more about baseball than your average Redditors.
Jerry is right ! I don’t see how it’s even a question at this point in anyone’s mind.
They paid a fortune to Soto, and Lindor just turned 32 last month.
You don’t fret over giving Diaz an extra year.
All long term contracts end up not having a good production-to-pay ratio in the final year or two.
That’s part of the cost of having elite talent on your team in the here & now.
Build the best pen you can for the here & now, and that means bringing back Diaz.
And frankly, after last year’s disaster/collapse, nobody wants to hear about being fiscally “over-prudent” this Winter – especially not at a critical position like closer.
Especially a closer who has proven for years that he can handle the pressure cooker of New York.
He gone. Stearns isn’t going to budge of the 5th year. Only way he comes back is if his market never materializes.
Diaz + Williams + Minter is the core of a dominant bullpen.
Anytime you give out longer that desired contracts, those extra years are payment for the prime years. Most people are not expected to continue to perform at a high level in their late 30s. You hope/plan to win in the front end of the contract. You just give the back end in the hopes they sign with you.
Blevins is absolutely spot on. Cohen will be printing his own money soon with his casino. There is no reason for them to not sign Diaz, Alonso, Bellinger and sign/trade for a top tier starter or two.
His last contract wasn’t even worth it, so sign him again for the same money when he’s 3 years older? With a POBO who made his bones churning out elite relievers and a farm loaded with arms?
Diaz on a 3 year deal? Perfectly fine. Diaz on a 5 year deal while he’s losing velo, striking batters out less, and has control issues is asking for that contract to be dead weight by 2028.
Does Blevins care that since joining the Mets Diaz has literally alternated between bad/avg vs great seasons each year? And giving that inconsistency, that five years might be too much.
Diaz signed his contract after 2022. What the mets got out of that was:
2023 – injured
2024 – lost the closer role. Went through multiple stretches where he could not get an out. Nearly cost the team a playoff spot.
2025 – insane year. Opts out.
“Maybe five years is too much” is not a crazy position to have. In fact I imagine it the position every team interested in Diaz has at the moment.
There are currently 4 RP signed to five year deals. All were 29 or younger at the time of signing. All but Hader make significantly less than the $20 million AAV Diaz is most likely going to get.
Blevins making the clarion call to sentimental fans who want to dole out bad contracts so they are happy in Dec of 2025 when Stearns is focused on the next five Octobers.
I mean, this is the exact same argument that ended up with the Mets giving far too many years to Nimmo and ending up needing to ship him off to Texas so that we could unload his age 35-37 seasons that we never should’ve committed to in the first place. I think the Mets should stretch their comfort level to bring Diaz back because he’s a really good player who would make the team better, but stretching means giving him 4 years instead of 3. Giving a 5 year deal to a 32 year old reliever isn’t just “win now”, it’s “mortgage the future to pay for now”.
I love Diaz as a Met. I want to see him back. That doesn’t mean blindly giving him 5 years. If someone is desperate enough to give him 5 years and taking the QO penalty on top of that, the Mets can put that money and draft pick to better use. Otherwise, the Mets shouldn’t be obligated to vastly outbid the most likely 3-4 year market that he’s going to be entertaining from other teams. Assuming his market stays rational, we should aim to be the highest bidder within it. If his market becomes irrational, we shouldn’t act irrationally too.
Idk man it feels like people keep underestimating how fast these deals can go bad for dudes in their 30s. If people are cool with having to make a bad contract swap or DFA Diaz because his deal went bad by year 3 instead of 5 then cool, give him 5 years. Hopefully it doesn’t go that way but we’ve seen it happen plenty of times before, more than we’ve seen it work out.