The New York Mets shored up their outfield depth for 2026 with a new signing over the weekend.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported Sunday that the Mets have agreed to a one-year deal with former Kansas City Royals outfielder MJ Melendez. The deal is for $1.5 million, plus $500,000 in incentives, and Heyman noted that it’s a major-league contract.
Melendez, 27, played only 23 games for Kansas City in 2025, spending most of the season with Triple-A Omaha after being demoted amid massive struggles at the plate. The Mets sent Melendez down after he posted an abysmal .321 OPS in 65 at-bats, and struck out 23 times in as many games.
A corner outfielder who has played both sides, Melendez’s best hope with the Mets is to get playing time in left field, with Juan Soto entrenched in right. The Mets have an opening in left field after trading Brandon Nimmo to the Rangers for second baseman Marcus Semien in November. They also added an everyday center fielder when they acquired Luis Robert Jr. in a trade with the White Sox.
Melendez’s starting experience in the majors could give him an early edge over Carson Benge, the Mets’ No. 2 overall prospect entering 2025. But if Melendez can’t turn around his performance at the plate, Benge’s relative youth and upside would have a good chance to take over in the race to start in left.
If Melendez can right the ship, he has shown some pop at the major league level. He averaged 20.1 home runs per 162 games over his first three seasons with the Royals. But he’s always been a strikeout machine, to the point that he doesn’t hit enough longballs to make up for the shortcomings. The Mets are hoping he can get back to a representative level and at least fill a bottom-half-of-the-lineup spot as a left fielder.