The New York Mets seem poised for a postseason return after trading for All-Star right-hander Freddy Peralta. Will top prospect Nolan McLean surpass him as the ace in 2026?
When the New York Mets fell flat on their faces during the second half of last season and missed the playoffs, most probably expected that the team would make a lot of changes to avoid another miserable collapse in 2026.
But most probably didn’t expect that New York would make changes to over 30 percent of their 40-man roster, but here we are. A new first baseman/designated hitter in Jorge Polanco, new second baseman in Marcus Semien, new third baseman in Bo Bichette, new center fielder in Luis Robert Jr., new relievers/closers Devin Williams and Luke Weaver have completely changed the look of this team.
Perhaps the biggest move came late last week, when the Mets made a blockbuster trade to acquire a bona fide ace. New York traded middle infielder/center fielder Jett Williams (Major League Baseball No. 51 prospect) and right-hander Brandon Sproat (MLB No. 100 prospect) for Milwaukee Brewers All-Star right-hander Freddy Peralta and righty Tobias Myers.
Part of New York’s “run prevention” model for the offseason was finding a frontline starter to elevate the starting rotation that was once the top unit in MLB last season but fell off a cliff during the second half, and they did just that.
Peralta easily becomes the No. 1 starter on this team, but could that change somewhere down the line in 2026? For starters (no pun intended), Peralta has one year left on his contract and he didn’t sign an extension after the trade.
Does this mean the Mets will trade him? It’s a possibility if they aren’t contending for a playoff spot, but highly unlikely. In the most likely scenario that he is a Met throughout the 2026 season, there’s a good chance that top prospect right-hander Nolan McLean could replace Peralta as the ace of the pitching staff.
McLean had a cup of coffee with the Mets last season and he was super impressive. He made eight starts and finished with a 2.06 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 57 strikeouts across 48 innings. He carried a 1.27 ERA into his final start against the Chicago Cubs but got tagged for five runs and three home runs.
MLB.com’s David Adler came up with a list of 10 players who could be the 2026 versions of the 2025 breakout stars, a list in which Adler thinks McLean can be this year’s Hunter Brown (takeover as team’s future ace).
“Like Brown, McLean is a promising young power pitcher who has a large and nasty pitch arsenal,” Adler wrote Tuesday. “He's got a 96 mph fastball, a sweeper that breaks 17 inches, a curveball with a 3,000 rpm spin rate and a sinker and changeup that both drop over five inches more than average.
“And the 24-year-old looked so good in his debut for New York down the stretch in 2025, that the takeover as Mets ace might well happen this season. The Mets have Freddy Peralta at the top of the rotation to start the season, but McLean could easily be the team's No. 1 by the end of it.”
Even if McLean doesn’t have a full season where he absolutely dominates hitters and takes over as the team’s ace, New York is in a great position to succeed regardless. Peralta has been an elite starter in this league since 2020 and finished fifth in National League Cy Young voting last season after going 17-6 with a 2.70 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 204 strikeouts in 33 starts (176.2 innings).