The Edwin Diaz contract was technically signed before free agency began so if you don’t want to consider it an extension, you don’t have to. He never actually did get to test the free agency waters. Similar to Mike Piazza when he inked a long-term deal with the Mets way back in the day, Diaz was willing to bypass seeing what others were willing to pay and stay in New York.
The Mets made it easy by paying him the richest contract for a relief pitcher in MLB history. Although Josh Hader’s contract from the Houston Astros from the 2023-2024 offseason is technically more valuable because it doesn’t include deferred money, the $102 million Diaz can take home beats his amount.
The Diaz contract certainly has a chance to move up this list, but right now it finishes only ahead of Nido—hopefully by a few miles.
A season-ending injury from the infamous WBC celebration ended year one under this extension with the Mets before it even began. There are two more years left before he can opt out of the contract. Mets fans will spend 2024 and 2025 holding their breath for two things. One is good health for the closer. The other is a lack of interest in playing anywhere else.
