The New York Mets overturned a lot of its roster after another disappointing season, so let's see how the former Mets are faring for their new clubs.
The New York Mets underwent a ton of roster changes during the offseason after its 2025 season ended in a historic collapse.
New York made changes to nearly one-third of its roster and departed from several longtime Mets, including multiple fan favorites that had been on the team for many seasons.
The most notable players to leave in free agency or to be dealt via trade were first baseman Pete Alonso, right-handed closer Edwin Diaz, left fielder Brandon Nimmo and second baseman Jeff McNeil.
Alonso signed a five-year, $155 million deal to join the Baltimore Orioles and Diaz signed a three-year, $69 million contract to be the next closer of the Los Angeles Dodgers, while Nimmo was traded to the Texas Rangers in exchange for second baseman Marcus Semien and McNeil was offloaded to the Athletics for minor league pitcher Yordan Rodriguez.
The Mets were focused on improving its defense during the offseason, so the organization let the more offense-focused Alonso to walk and traded Nimmo for a proven defender in Semien, which set the table for McNeil to be moved.
Well, the vision hasn’t worked thus far, and the Mets are currently on an 11-game losing streak, the franchise’s worst since 2004. So, I think it’s important that we take a look at how well New York’s former cornerstones have performed with their new teams.
While he’s been slightly more productive than Jorge Polanco, who was brought in to DH and play first base, Alonso hasn’t gotten off to a great start for the Orioles. The “Polar Bear” has just two home runs and eight RBI while slashing .207/.323/.341 (.664 OPS) in 22 games. Polanco is currently fighting multiple ailments on the 10-day injured list and has just one homer and two RBI while slashing .179/.246/.286 (.532 OPS) in 14 games.
Diaz got off to a good start, allowing just one run through his first five appearances and earning four saves during that stretch. His last two outings have been disastrous, though, and he has allowed six runs on seven hits and two walks combined against the Texas Rangers and Colorado Rockies. He failed to record a single out against the Rockies, inflating his ERA to 10.50 with a 2.33 WHIP over 6+ innings.
His replacement, righty Devin Williams, just blew a save against the Chicago Cubs on Sunday and carries a 7.11 ERA and 2.05 WHIP through seven appearances (6.1 innings). Somehow, this is chalked up as a win for the Mets.
Nimmo has been swinging a hot bat all season long, hitting four home runs with 11 RBI while slashing .311/.386/.522 (.908 OPS) in 22 games and to New York’s surprise, he has been a good defender for Texas. Although center fielder Luis Robert Jr. has been the best Met this season, he has cooled off over the past week, so the Mets lose again on its off day.
McNeil hasn’t homered and has just four RBI but he is getting on base, slashing .266/.351/.344 (.695 OPS) in 21 games. Semien has one home run and eight RBI while slashing .234/.294/.312 (.606 OPS) in 22 games. Oh, and McNeil went 6-for-13 with an RBI in his return to Citi Field earlier this month.
Of the four biggest departures, three have outperformed their replacement. That’s not going to sit well with fans, and something will have to be done soon to try and save the season. Whether that’s firing manager Carlos Mendoza remains to be seen, but despite a vote of confidence from general manager David Stearns, his removal could be coming soon.
Update: Diaz will undergo surgery to "remove loose bodies" in his right elbow. He is expected to miss "somewhere in the neighborhood of three months."