Edwin Diaz Declines $20 Million Qualifying Offer with New York Mets

The New York Mets are looking to figure out how to bounce back after a disappointing season where they failed to make the postseason and have some key free agent decisions to make. The team offered closer Edwin Diaz the qualifying offer, which is a $20.025 million contract for the 2026 season, but he decided against it and will be an unrestricted free agent.

Let’s take a deeper dive into the New York Mets and Edwin Diaz to discuss why this decision was made.

Edwin Diaz Declines Qualifying Offer From New York Mets

Edwin Diaz had one of the top seasons for a relief pitcher as he won the 2025 Trevor Hoffman Reliever of the Year Award. The 31-year-old reliever is looking for a longer contract than a one-year deal and could easily return to the New York Mets as he pitched a 3.0 WAR season.

Diaz finished 6-3 with a 1.63 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP in 66.1 innings. He had 28 saves and was an All-Star last season while being one of the only bullpen arms on the team that could be trusted with the game on the line down the stretch. He also decided to opt out of the remaining two years and $38 million on his contract, so things could get interesting.

There are going to be no shortage of suitors for Diaz, but whoever signs him will need to give the Mets a compensatory 2026 Draft pick after the fourth round. With president of baseball operations David Stearns taking a more financially stable approach at other positions, there is a chance Diaz is pitching outside of Queens next season and beyond.

It will be interesting to see who is interested in the closer who had 144 saves over his six seasons with the Mets after being part of the trade that sent Robinson Cano from the Seattle Mariners. Teams are going to be wanting to add a veteran closer that believe they are close to being a World Series contender, but where will he wind up pitching?