The New York Mets hope that a recent contract extension involving a star pitcher at a rival club could help them out. Jesus Luzardo and the Philadelphia Phillies officially agreed to a new deal on March 10. The starting pitcher will now earn $135 million over five years to stay with his current team.
Although the deal does not involve the Mets at all, it can affect New York in two different ways. At the moment, Mets management is negotiating a contract extension with Freddy Peralta. The ace was acquired by the club during the offseason in a blockbuster trade with the Milwaukee Brewers. Peralta will make just $8 million in 2026 and is then set to become a free agent.
The star recently admitted that he would like to remain with his new team beyond the upcoming season. Nevertheless, he also claimed that he wants a seven or eight-year contract. This could become problematic for the Mets. It was revealed in December that New York prefers not to hand out long-term contracts to starting pitchers. The stance seemingly hindered their chances of acquiring a marquee starter in free agency.
The Athletic’s Tim Britton is claiming that the Luzardo extension could be a decent comp for Peralta. As Britton points out, the two star pitchers are fairly similar. While Peralta posted a lower ERA than Luzardo in 2025, the Phillies starter had a better fWAR. Milwaukee’s stellar defense certainly helped Peralta out during the most recent campaign. According to the reporter, WAR tends to affect how pitchers get paid more than ERA.
New York Mets Have More Pressure to Re-Sign Freddy Peralta
GettyFreddy Peralta will be the 2026 opening day starter for the New York Mets.
The financial aspects of the Luzardo extension could help the Mets in their negotiations with Peralta. Nevertheless, the agreement will put more pressure on New York to strike a deal. With Luzardo now off the board, Peralta will likely be the number two starting pitcher in free agency next year. Detroit Tigers superstar Tarik Skubal is the undisputed top starter in the class.
Assuming Peralta sticks to his guns, he will likely get a huge offer in free agency. In fact, this could be the only way he receives a seven or eight-contract. Max Fried previously earned an eight-year, $218 million contract with the New York Yankees in the winter of 2024. The ace was similarly aged as Peralta at the time.
Starting pitchers do not typically receive such deals in extensions. It is actually incredibly rare. In recent memory, only Stephen Strasburg and Jose Berrios agreed to seven-year extensions to remain with their clubs. Neither deal worked out particularly well for the teams. Mets GM David Stearns is likely well aware of these situations, too.
Mets May Have to Offer High AAV to Retain Ace
Ultimately, New York will be hoping that Peralta caves on his demands. It seems fairly unlikely that Stearns would be willing to offer the ace an eight-year extension. Peralta could very well bet on himself and see how he performs at the start of the 2026 season before making a decision. He is off to a solid start in spring training by striking out seven batters in six innings.
One way that the two sides may potentially meet in the middle is if the Mets offer Peralta fewer years, but a higher AAV. Stearns was able to sign star infielder Bo Bichette with a similar tactic. The former Blue Jay shocked many by agreeing to join New York in a three-year, $126 million deal in January.
Mets Chances of Re-Signing Star Pitcher Affected by Rivals