Can the Mets rebound in 2026? Targets, trade chips after disappointing first season with Juan Soto

The 2025 season could not have gone much worse for the Mets. New York won 89 games and went to the NLCS in 2024, signed Juan Soto in the offseason, then won 83 games and missed the postseason in 2025. A shutout loss to the Marlins on the final day of the season sent the Reds to the playoffs and the Mets home. Now POBO David Stearns must pick up the pieces this winter.

“I’m the architect of the team. I’m responsible for it,” Stearns said after the season. “… (We were) a team that underachieved greatly. We know that. I certainly know that. And we’re gonna work really hard to fix that going forward, learn from this, and do a heck of a lot better.”

The Mets finished the season with a $342 million payroll for competitive balance tax purposes, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts. That was second only to the World Series champion Dodgers. Including arbitration projections, the Mets have about $250 million on the books in 2026. That gives them plenty of money to spend, and of course owner Steven Cohen could spend more.

What do the Mets need this offseason? Who could they target? Who could they move? Let’s dive into that now in our offseason preview for one of baseball’s most disappointing teams in 2025.

Needs

The Mets have rotation depth — seven of the nine pitchers who made five starts in 2025 are healthy and under contract/team control in 2026 — but they lack an ace. They have a collection of No. 3 starter types, many of who ran out of steam late in the season. A bona fide No. 1 starter, a true frontline pitcher who can start Game 1 in October, is surely atop the offseason shopping list.

Stearns said improving the team defense is a must this offseason and there are four positions the Mets can easily do that: first base, second base, third base, and center field. Pete Alonso opted out of his contract, and while we can’t rule out a reunion, it seems less likely this offseason than last. The team’s in-house third basemen (Brett Baty, Mark Vientos, etc.) won’t stand in the way of anything.

Like Alonso, Edwin Díaz opted out his contract this offseason, creating a ninth-inning void in a bullpen that was already short one or two (or three) quality arms. It’s a pretty lengthy offseason to-do list. The Mets need an ace, most of a bullpen, an improved defense, and lineup length. Too many nights this past summer their 7-8-9 hitters put up little resistance.

Possible targets

Even if they make righty Nolan McLean and shortstop/center fielder Jett Williams off-limits, the Mets are not short on high quality prospects to trade this offseason. They also have lots of money to spend. The Mets have the resources to get anyone they want this offseason. Whether free agents or trade partners want what they have to offer is another matter.

If the Mets are going to spend significant dollars on a 30-something corner infielder, Alex Bregman is a much better fit than Alonso. Bregman is a capable middle-of-the-order righty bat and would improve the infield defense considerably. The Mets could slide Vientos over to first, where he fits best defensively, and Baty looked competent in his limited second base time. Signing Bregman and letting Alonso leave would for sure improve the Mets defensively at one position (third base) and could improve them at as many as three positions (also first and second bases). Bregman has to be a consideration this winter.

Could the Mets lure an outfielder away from the Yankees for the second straight offseason? Cody Bellinger remains a strong center fielder defensively, plus he’s shown he can bounce between the outfield corners and first base pretty seamlessly. He provides an element of versatility you usually don’t get from a player who spent most of his most recent season in an outfield corner. That would come in handy when top prospect Carson Benge is ready to take over center field. That could be fairly early in 2026. Bellinger would also provide lineup length and the Mets already know he would have no trouble playing in New York.

If the Tigers make ace Tarik Skubal available, you have to figure the Mets will be at the front of the line. They have the prospects to trade and the need atop the rotation, plus the financial wherewithal to sign him to the largest pitching contract in history when he becomes a free agent next offseason. The question isn’t so much if the Mets can swing a trade for Skubal. It’s if the Tigers are willing to trade him. Skubal would make every rotation better and that goes double for a Mets team lacking an ace.

My guess is a Díaz reunion is more likely than an Alonso reunion, though I would not assume a bringing back the closer is inevitable. Stearns is not keen on committing long-term to pitchers and Díaz, even at age 31, could command a four- or five-year contract. Robert Suarez, most recently of the Padres, opted out of his contract to become a free agent this winter, like Díaz. He will turn 35 in March, so he won’t require as long of a contract, and Suarez could be every bit as good as Díaz the next few years. Signing Suarez could be a smarter move than re-signing Díaz. Shorter term contract and little to no drop in performance, potentially.

The Red Sox have more outfielders than outfield spots and it feels like it’s time to do something about it. Jarren Duran, 29, is older and closer to free agency than Wilyer Abreu, Roman Anthony, Ceddanne Rafaela, et al, making him the obvious trade candidate. The Mets could put him in center field, a position he is more than capable of playing, until Benge arrives, then slide Durran over to left and get lockdown defense there. Durran would bring a dynamic power/speed threat to the lineup as well. The Mets have pitching to trade and need an outfielder. The Red Sox have outfielders to trade and need pitching. Hmmm.

Possible trade chips

Baty, Vientos, and Ronny Mauricio give the Mets more young infielders who need at-bats than there are at-bats to give. Making all three available and seeing what the trade market turns up is a sensible move. It never hurts to listen, you know? I suspect the Mets would like to unload Jeff McNeil and might even be willing to eat some of the $17.75 million he’s owed in 2026 to make it happen.

McLean is presumably untouchable. There’s no reason to make Brandon Sproat or Jonah Tong off-limits though, ditto Christian Scott, who is nearing the end of his Tommy John surgery rehab. Others like infielders Jacob Reimer and A.J. Ewing, and slugger Ryan Clifford, are exactly the kind of second-tier prospects a team like the Mets should be willing to trade for immediate MLB help.

MLB Pipeline ranked New York’s farm system seventh best in baseball after the trade deadline. They have high-end prospects to trade for a difference-making big leaguer, and also Grade B and C prospects to move for smaller upgrades. Don’t forget their ability to take on salary too. We should count that as a trade chip. Eating money has pushed many a trade across the finish line.