Edwin Diaz agrees to deal with Dodgers, per reports
Mets reliever Edwin Diaz. Credit: Newsday/Thomas A. Ferrara
ORLANDO, Fla. – The trumpets will go silent at Citi Field.
Edwin Diaz finalized a three-year deal with the Dodgers worth $69 million, according to a report from ESPN – officially ending his six-year tenure with the Mets. Diaz declined a $20.025 million qualifying offer from the Mets, meaning the Dodgers will owe them a compensatory draft pick. The closer previously opted out of the final two years of his five-year contract.
He remains the highest-paid full-time reliever in baseball. He also is the highest-paid reliever in MLB history.
The Dodgers bullpen, which was a point of weakness in their World Series run, should be significantly better with the All-Star closer, who posted a 1.63 ERA and 28 saves last season.
In his time with the Mets, he pitched to a 2.93 ERA with 144 saves, became a shutdown option out of the bullpen, and, in 2022, reached near cult status via his wicked fastball-slider combo and his iconic entrance music, the trumpet-heavy “Narco.”
Diaz said last month that while he would like to return to Flushing, he was aiming to look at the big picture, calling the potential of a return "50-50."
The goal was to “just get the best deal for my family,” he said at the MLB Awards Show in Las Vegas. “I love New York. I would love to stay in New York, but if I have to go another place, I would be happy. I want to win a ring, so wherever I go, I want to win a ring and enjoy the time.”
He’ll certainly have a shot at that with the Dodgers, the two-time defending World Series champs who boast the game’s biggest payroll and its biggest stars. The Mets bullpen, meanwhile, remains in construction mode. With Diaz out of the picture, the closer role will shift to Devin Williams, whom they signed for three years and $51 million last week.
Williams, who struggled with the Yankees last year, has nonetheless been one of the best relievers in baseball since winning rookie of the year honors in 2020. President of baseball operations David Stearns said Monday that A.J. Minter, who suffered a torn lat last season, is expected to be back in 2026, but likely with a delayed start. After that, there’s more work to do.
“We're certainly thrilled that we were able to add Devin Williams [but] I wouldn't say we're done with our bullpen at this point,’ Stearns said Monday. “We recognize that we have slots to fill. Some of those may come through free agency. Some of those may come through trade. Some of those may come from some internal candidates who we think are poised to take a next step, either in their development or the next step in perhaps a role they can occupy at the major-league level. But we understand we've got some roles to fill in the pen, and I'm confident we're going to be able to.”
Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.
