ESPN’s Jeff Passan provided some insight on SportsCenter Tuesday night into what went wrong between the New York Mets and closer Edwin Díaz before he reportedly left Queens to sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
According to Passan, the split between Díaz and the Mets started when the pitcher “did not get a call giving him a heads up” about the decision to sign reliever Devin Williams to a three-year contract on Dec. 3.
“Now, he’s a free agent so perhaps that’s understandable, but he was not happy about that,” Passan said about that reported lack of communication.
Williams then became interested in the Dodgers because his brother Alexis Díaz, a pitcher who appeared in nine games for the organization before he was DFA’d last season, “reported back to him that everything there is as great as they say,” Passan said.
“This deal came together quickly,” Passan said. “The thought was that Edwin Díaz was looking for five years, might get four years, the Dodgers did not want to go any more than three years.
“But putting that $69 million out there—the highest average annual value ever for a closer— the Mets simply were not going to match that.”
The Dodgers reportedly signed Díaz to a three-year, $69 million deal after the reliever opted out of the two years and $38 million remaining on his previous contract with the Mets.
Per MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo, the Mets’ final offer to Díaz had been a three-year, $66 million deal “with slight deferrals.”
MLB.com’s Sonja Chen and David Adler reported Mets officials “made it known they had room to improve,” but that “Díaz chose the Dodgers before that happened.”
Passan previously reported Williams’ contract with the Mets had “no opt-outs or options.”
The Athletic’s Will Sammon reported at the time of Williams’ signing that the Mets remained “open to a reunion with Díaz.”
Williams could slot into an eighth-inning role, Sammon wrote, should Díaz return as the Mets’ go-to ninth-inning man.
Díaz’s departure will instead put Williams on track to serve as the Mets’ closer in 2026.
He’ll have big shoes to fill. In 31 save opportunities last season, Díaz converted 28 while posting a 1.63 ERA and 0.874 WHIP.
After an embarrassing playoff miss despite one of the highest payrolls in baseball last season, however, the Mets could be ready for some change. General manager David Stearns said after trading Brandon Nimmo in November he doesn’t plan to “run it back” with the same team.
The biggest free agency question for the Mets will now center on star first baseman Pete Alonso. MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand recently reported the club is “hesitant” to sign him to more than three years.
In Los Angeles, meanwhile, this marks the second straight offseason during which the Dodgers have signed the top reliever available in free agency.
The club brought in Tanner Scott last winter following his back-to-back All-Star campaigns for the Miami Marlins and San Diego Padres.
Scott was unable to play up to those same standards in 2025, going from a sub-2.00 ERA over the two seasons prior to 4.74 earned runs per game last season.
The Dodgers will hope to see more consistency from Díaz, who has played at an All-Star level both before and after the knee surgery that sidelined him for the 2023 season.
After being forced to turn to starters like Blake Snell and a non-rested Yoshinobu Yamamoto to close out games in the 2025 World Series, Los Angeles could be hoping the acquisition of Díaz and a bounce-back season from Scott can help the club field a deeper bullpen next fall.