Mets Avoid Arbitration by Shelling Out New Deals

The New York Mets worked hard Thursday to try and get deals done with their seven remaining arbitration-eligible players.

Some were going to be tough to get done, such as first baseman Pete Alonso. Others were a bit easier.

The Mets got a deal done with pitcher David Peterson, who was in his first year of arbitration. Peterson is going to miss at least part of the 2024 season after hip surgery. He’ll make $2.15 million per MLB.com.

Peterson went 3-8 with a 5.03 ERA in 2023, striking out 128 as he worked in the starting rotation. Given the Mets’ recent moves, once he’s healthy he may not have a rotation spot to come back to.

Tyrone Taylor, an outfielder and one of the two players the Mets traded for earlier this offseason from the Milwaukee Brewers, reportedly agreed to a $2.025 million deal in his first year of arbitration. Taylor batted .234/.267/.446/.713 last season with 10 home runs and 35 RBI in 81 games.

Another Mets pitcher, Joey Lucchesi, agreed to a deal worth $1.65 million as reported by the New York Post. He was in his first year of arbitration. The left-hander got a late run in the rotation last season and went 4-0 with a 2.89 ERA in nine starts.

After the deadline, four players remained without reported deals — Alonso, Drew Smith, Adrian Houser and Phil Bickford.

Alonso, naturally, is the player all Mets fans want to know about. He’s due an estimated $21 million in arbitration and is a three-time All-Star, former National League Rookie of the Year and has 192 home runs, including a MLB-leading 53 his rookie season in 2019.

The Mets started the season with 16 arbitration-eligible players and new president of baseball operations David Stearns released the majority of them last year. Only one got a deal done with the Mets before Thursday and that was outfielder D.J. Stewart, who signed a $1.38 million deal.

For those players without deals, they must exchange arbitration numbers with the Mets Thursday night. They can still agree to terms before an arbitration hearing.