{"id":532860,"date":"2026-01-22T16:46:15","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T16:46:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/532860\/"},"modified":"2026-01-22T16:46:15","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T16:46:15","slug":"will-this-mets-overhaul-work-plus-bellingers-back-in-the-bronx","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/532860\/","title":{"rendered":"Will this Mets overhaul work? Plus: Bellinger\u2019s back in the Bronx."},"content":{"rendered":"

The Windup Newsletter \u26be | This is The Athletic\u2019s MLB<\/a> newsletter. Sign up here<\/a> to receive The Windup directly in your inbox.<\/p>\n

The \u201cNew Year, New Me\u201d New York Mets added Freddy Peralta and Luis Robert Jr. in trades. Plus: Cody Bellinger goes back to the Bronx, and we have two new Hall of Fame inductees. I\u2019m Levi Weaver, let\u2019s start with Ken Rosenthal today \u2014 welcome to The Windup!<\/p>\n

(And if you haven\u2019t yet: Let us know how we\u2019re doing in our\u00a0reader survey<\/a>!)<\/p>\n

Ken\u2019s Notebook: Evaluating Mets moves and concerns\u00a0<\/p>\n

Thanks, Levi. Here\u2019s an excerpt from\u00a0my latest column<\/a>:<\/p>\n

The Mets\u2019 failure to qualify for the postseason with the game\u2019s second-highest payroll last season more than justified Stearns\u2019 gutting of the roster. On paper, Stearns has compensated for the free-agent defections of first baseman Pete Alonso and closer Edwin D\u00edaz and trades of left fielder Brandon Nimmo and infielder\/outfielder Jeff McNeil.\u00a0And his acquisition Wednesday night\u00a0of right-handers Freddy Peralta and Tobias Myers<\/a>\u00a0from the Brewers addressed the team\u2019s one remaining need, a top-of-the-rotation starter.<\/p>\n

Stearns\u2019 predecessor, Billy Eppler, was the head of baseball operations in 2022 when the Mets drafted the two players they traded to the Brewers, right-hander Brandon Sproat and infielder\/outfielder Jett Williams. But Stearns in two-plus years at the helm has instituted processes to help make the Mets\u2019 farm system one of the game\u2019s best.<\/p>\n

While both Sproat and Williams cracked Baseball America\u2019s latest top 100 prospects<\/a>, the Mets placed four others on the list, tying the White Sox and Guardians for the most of any club. At the major-league level, none of the Mets\u2019 additions has come with a commitment of more than three years, creating room for the club to integrate young talent.<\/p>\n

The flip side of Stearns\u2019 short-term strategy is that Peralta and Bo Bichette could be gone after one year. The same goes for new center fielder Robert Jr., too, if he proves unworthy of the Mets picking up his $20 million club option. Jorge Polanco and Luke Weaver signed for two years. Reliever Devin Williams took three, and the Mets exchanged five years of Nimmo for three of 2B Marcus Semien<\/p>\n

Future turnover, then, is inevitable. But that\u2019s a matter for another day. The bigger immediate concerns are whether this team can stay healthy, and whether it will improve as much defensively as Stearns envisioned \u2014 and in that area again, the Mets couldn\u2019t be much worse. They ranked 21st in Outs Above Average<\/a>\u00a0last season and\u00a022nd in defensive efficiency<\/a>\u00a0(converting batted balls into outs).<\/p>\n

Stearns trumpeted the idea Wednesday the Mets\u2019 infield will include four players who began their career as shortstops. Polanco began working at first last season with Seattle, so it\u2019s not difficult to picture him being at least as good as Alonso. Bichette\u2019s arm at third is a question, but he will have all spring to adapt to different throwing angles. Semien, meanwhile, is coming off a Gold Glove season at second with Texas. The bigger question with him is whether at age 35 he can rebound from back-to-back, sub-.700 OPS seasons.<\/p>\n

More Peralta trade:\u00a0Keith Law says the Brewers\u00a0did well in their return<\/a>\u00a0for Peralta.\u00a0Check out\u00a0our trade grades<\/a>\u00a0for both teams.<\/p>\n

Back to you, Levi.<\/p>\n

Big Swings: Mets trade for Luis Robert Jr.<\/p>\n

In our last Windup, I noted the Mets appeared to now have too many infielders:\u00a0As for the other (infielders) \u2026 maybe they just became part of the plan to get\u00a0one more outfielder<\/a>?<\/p>\n

That was correct. Luisangel Acu\u00f1a was the odd man out, heading to the White Sox with 22-year-old minor-league pitcher Truman Pauley\u00a0for Luis Robert Jr<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This is a super exciting trade \u2026 if you haven\u2019t paid attention to baseball since 2023.<\/p>\n

That was the first year Robert stayed healthy, hitting 38 home runs, making his first All-Star Game, winning a Silver Slugger award and finishing 12th in AL MVP voting!<\/p>\n

And the return: Acu\u00f1a, the infield prospect the Mets acquired from the Rangers in the Max Scherzer trade. Wow! What a blockbuster!<\/p>\n

Welcome to 2026, though. The White Sox lost 101 games in 2023, and another 223 in the two years since. Coincidentally, .223 is also Robert\u2019s combined batting average over the last two years (.660 OPS). His speed and defense haven\u2019t declined, though \u2014 and outfield defense is something the Mets needed.<\/p>\n

And it\u2019s not like Acu\u00f1a has maintained his mega-prospect status. He\u2019s been middling in 214 big-league at-bats over the last two years.<\/p>\n

Both teams are surely hoping\u00a0their guy will be the one to break out under new surroundings.<\/p>\n

Trade Grades:\u00a0Andy McCullough and Zack Meisel\u00a0get out the red pens<\/a>\u00a0for the Luis-a-thon.<\/p>\n

Welcome Back: Cody Bellinger, Yankees (finally) reunite<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not saying \u201cJust kiss already!\u201d is the\u00a0best way to describe this winter\u2019s Yankees\/Bellinger standoff, but it\u2019s the one I kept coming back to. (C\u2019mon, we know you two are going to end up together, right?)<\/p>\n

But as Bellinger\u2019s side held out for a seven-year deal, the Mets became engaged. When Kyle Tucker spurned the Mets for the Dodgers, it seemed like an all-New York bidding war might be in the cards.<\/p>\n

But by Wednesday afternoon, with the Mets\u2019 outfield vacancy filled by Robert, Bellinger was a Yankee again, signing for five years and $162.5 million<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Bellinger\u2019s free-agency journey has been an odd one. The 2017 NL Rookie of the Year and 2019 NL MVP with the Dodgers, he seemed destined for a mega deal. But his final two years in L.A. were bad, as he struggled to recover from a shoulder injury he sustained in the 2020 postseason.<\/p>\n

That led to a one-year pillow deal with the Cubs in 2023, and he returned to form, hitting .307 (.881 OPS) with 26 home runs. Good enough for a long-term deal, right?<\/p>\n

Nope. It took until late February 2024 for him to return to the Cubs on just a three-year contract. Last December, he was salary-dump traded to the Yankees and was excellent in the Bronx, logging 5.1 bWAR.<\/p>\n

That seemed like the perfect time to opt out and hit free agency again, at age 30.<\/p>\n

Five years and $162.5 million isn\u2019t scraps. The $32.5 million AAV ties him with Nolan Arenado and Corey Seager for 17th highest in 2026. I guess I\u2019m just surprised that this will be the biggest contract of his career.<\/p>\n

More Yankees:\u00a0If it feels like New York is just running it back \u2026\u00a0is that so bad<\/a>?<\/p>\n

Welcome In: Carlos Beltr\u00e1n, Andruw Jones join HOF<\/p>\n

With no slam-dunk first-timers on the ballot and a big influx in first-time voters, it was a weird year for Hall of Fame voting. So why wouldn\u2019t it be an unusual outcome? Two center fielders \u2014\u00a0Carlos Beltr\u00e1n and Andruw Jones<\/a>\u00a0\u2014\u00a0were elected.<\/p>\n

Why is that weird? From\u00a0Jayson Stark\u2019s column<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Before this election, the Baseball Writers\u2019 Association of America had elected only two true center fielders \u2014 Ken Griffey Jr. in 2016 and Kirby Puckett in 2001 \u2014 in the previous 45 years.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Beltr\u00e1n was an interesting case. Statistically? No-doubter. He finished with 2,725 hits, 435 home runs and 312 stolen bases. Only four others have done that. Willie Mays and Andre Dawson are Hall of Famers, and Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez \u2026 aren\u2019t (for\u00a0other\u00a0reasons).<\/p>\n

That leads me to the \u201cbut\u201d: Beltr\u00e1n\u2019s role with the trash-can bangin\u2019 2017 Astros. It was, with no equivocation, cheating. Isn\u2019t a World Series title more impactful than, say, some\u00a0intentionally bad pitches<\/a>?<\/p>\n

Jones\u2019 candidacy had issues too. He\u2019s one of only four players with 10 Gold Gloves and 400+ home runs (Mays, Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Schmidt). But his other career numbers are very borderline, and his 2012\u00a0domestic violence arrest<\/a>\u00a0certainly gave pause.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t have a vote for a few more years, but I\u2019m not sure where I would have landed with either guy if I had voted this year.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, they\u2019re Hall of Famers now. They\u2019ll join Jeff Kent at this year\u2019s induction.<\/p>\n

More Hall of Fame:\u00a0Stark takes an early look at\u00a0the 2027 ballot<\/a>. Got questions for his\u00a0HOF Q&A<\/a>?<\/p>\n

Handshakes and High Fives<\/p>\n

Chad Jennings\u2019 \u201cTiers of Trying<\/a>\u201d column also doubles as a handy team-by-team recap of the entire offseason.<\/p>\n

Alex Bregman wore No. 2 as a reminder the Diamondbacks didn\u2019t take him with the first pick of the 2015 draft. The guy they\u00a0did\u00a0take\u00a0is now his teammate<\/a>. (Bregman will wear No. 3 with the Cubs, as he chases his third ring.)<\/p>\n

Jen McCaffrey has the\u00a0story of Boston\u2019s pivot\u00a0<\/a>from Bregman to Ranger Su\u00e1rez, while Charlotte Varnes\u00a0reveals the awkwardness<\/a>\u00a0in the reunion between J.T. Realmuto and the Phillies.<\/p>\n

Katie Woo reports that Kyle Tucker had\u00a0an offer of 10 years and $350 million<\/a>\u00a0from the Blue Jays, but opted to sign with the Dodgers for less.<\/p>\n

\u2026 and that\u00a0made the other owners very mad<\/a>.<\/p>\n

On the pods:\u00a0Rates & Barrels have two more positional previews for you:\u00a0second base<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0catcher<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Most-clicked in our last newsletter:\u00a0I feel a little bad tricking you by saying there was\u00a0hidden camera footage<\/a>\u00a0from the Dodgers\u2019 Winter Meeting suite. (I stand by the reference, though.)<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udceb Love The Windup? Check out\u00a0The Athletic\u2019s other newsletters<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Windup Newsletter \u26be | This is The Athletic\u2019s MLB newsletter. Sign up here to receive The Windup…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":532861,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2396],"tags":[5,101,4,1690,61,2548,4203],"class_list":{"0":"post-532860","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-mets","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-mets","10":"tag-mlb","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-mets","13":"tag-newyork","14":"tag-newyorkmets"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/115939769281518438","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/532860","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=532860"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/532860\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/532861"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=532860"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=532860"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=532860"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}