Beltran, Martinez, Granderson, and Ventura etched their names into Mets lore. Discover how these four free agents became legends.
Located in one of the world’s biggest markets, the New York Mets have always had an advantage over most teams when it came to free agency. Because of this, there have been plenty of big names to sign with the Mets over the years, with many of them cementing themselves in club history along the way.
Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report recently made a list for each MLB team’s free agent signings Mt. Rushmore, and the names that made it onto the Mets’ list are some of the biggest in the entire article. Outfielders Carlos Beltran, Curtis Granderson, starting pitcher Pedro Martinez, and third baseman Robin Ventura were selected by Reuter as the four most influential names in Mets history to sign with the team in free agency.
Beltran signed a seven-year, $119 million deal with New York ahead of the 2005 season after back-to-back seasons receiving MVP votes. His first season in Queens was somewhat disappointing, but he solidified himself as one of the best outfielders in baseball for his remaining time with the Mets. He made five All-Star games as a Met and won three Gold Gloves and two Silver Sluggers. A 129 OPS+ hitter while proving elite defense during his time with the Mets, Beltran’s legacy is certainly in New York.
During the same offseason in which Beltran signed with New York, Martinez also made the move to Queens on a four-year, $53 million contract. He didn’t provide the same longevity as Beltran, but Martínez had a dominant first season with the Mets. In 2005, Martinez won 15 games on a 2.82 ERA with a league-leading 0.95 WHIP. A ridiculous 7.0 of his 8.1 WAR with the Mets came that season, but it’s enough to earn him a spot on the club’s Mt. Rushmore.
Granderson joined the Mets from the crosstown rival New York Yankees on a $60 million deal in 2013. He wasn’t quite at the same level he was at with the Yankees, but Granderson became a pillar of the mid-2010s Mets. He finished his time in Queens with 11.1 WAR, 95 home runs, and 116 OPS+ during his three and a half seasons.
Ventura is the only player on the list to sign before the turn of the century, joining the Mets in 1998 on a four-year, $32 million deal. In his first season, Ventura hit 32 home runs and drove in 120 runs on his way to a sixth-place MVP finish while also winning a Gold Glove. His 6.7 WAR in 1999 was the most of any season in Ventura’s career. He played just two more seasons with the Mets, but he made the most of his time at the club, earning himself a place on the club’s Mt. Rushmore of signings.
The Mets signed outfielder Juan Soto to a massive $765 million deal last offseason, and it’s only a matter of time until he does enough in blue pinstripes to earn himself a spot on the list in the future. If not Soto, perhaps the Mets’ biggest 2025 signee, infielder Bo Bichette, will have enough impact to slide into conversations as one of the best free agent signees of the club’s history.