New York Mets' prized acquisition, Freddy Peralta, cracks MLB's top-10 Opening Day starters. A huge year is expected after a blockbuster trade and top prospect haul.
The New York Mets hit big with a huge acquisition of Milwaukee Brewers star pitcher Freddy Peralta this offseason.
The Mets needed to find a true ace on top of the starting rotation, and they did exactly that.
The Mets had also been linked to Framber Valdez and others, but Valdez signed a huge contract with the Detroit Tigers.
It wasn't cheap, and the Mets sent top prospects Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat to Milwaukee for Peralta, and he only has one year remaining on his contract.
In some unsurprising news, the Mets named Peralta the Opening Day starter, and he will toe the mound against Pittsburgh Pirates sensation Paul Skenes at Citi Field on Thursday.
Voters from MLB.com ranked the Opening Day starters 1-10, and Peralta made the list at No. 10. Here is the entire list from MLB.com.
- Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh Pirates
- Tarik Skubal, Detroit Tigers
- Garrett Crochet, Boston Red Sox
- Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Los Angeles Dodgers
- Cristopher Sanchez, Philadelphia Phillies
- Hunter Brown, Houston Astros
- Max Fried, New York Yankees
- Logan Webb, San Francisco Giants
- Chris Sale, Atlanta Braves
- Freddy Peralta, New York Mets
Here's what Andrew Simon of MLB.com wrote about Peralta landing at No. 10.
"There’s a lot riding on Peralta’s performance in 2026...Peralta is coming off perhaps his finest season, having posted a 2.70 ERA in 33 starts for the Brewers, while reaching the 200-strikeout mark for the third year in a row. Can he repeat the feat in Queens?"
Peralta had spent his entire time with the Brewers, winning 70 games in 162 regular-season starts.
Last season was the best of his career. He made a career-high 33 starts, going 17-6 with a 2.70 ERA, putting career-bests in wins and ERA.
Peralta is set to be the ace for the Mets, and here is what the rest of the rotation looks like to begin 2026, per MLB.com Mets reporter Anthony DiComo.
- Freddy Peralta
- David Peterson
- Nolan McLean
- Clay Holmes
- Kodai Senga
Sean Manaea is set to be used in a piggyback role to begin the year, at least for now.
Jonah Tong begins the year in the minors, and there is depth in the rotation, but the Mets need a huge year from Peralta, especially after trading away some talented prospects.
For Peralta, the two sides are hoping for a long-term extension, but he needs to get off to a strong start to show the franchise that he is worth a big payday to stay in town for years to come.
Now, unfortunately for Peralta, going against Skenes is a tough task, and the Pirates' flamethrower is arguably the best pitcher in the game, so it will be a tough test early on for the former Brewers star pitcher.