Sep 18, 2025; New York City, New York, USA; Mr. and Mrs. Met play the trumpets as New York Mets relief pitcher Edwin Diaz (not pictured) enters the game against the San Diego Padres during the ninth inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Brad Penner
Nimmo, Díaz and Alonso. Oh my.
When the New York Mets traded outfielder Brandon Nimmo to the Texas Rangers on Nov. 24, they absolutely did not expect their top two free agents to depart for other ballclubs a couple of weeks later.
But now Edwin Díaz is a Los Angeles Dodger, and Pete Alonso is a Baltimore Oriole, and the Big Apple's core is nowhere to be found.
The Nimmo trade brought in Gold Glove second baseman Marcus Semien to shore up the Mets' subpar defense, but it also sent their longest-tenured player packing. The Mets drafted Nimmo in 2011, and he played 10 seasons with the club from 2016 to 2025. He signed an eight-year, $162 million contract in 2022. The fanbase loved him, the club loved him.
Nimmo had never been anything other than a Met. He was supposed to be a Met for life. And he was jettisoned on a random Monday in November, used as a trade piece to bring in a 35-year-old who posted a .669 OPS in 2025.
That was the first franchise pillar to fall in the offseason. But much to Mets fans' chagrin, there were more pillars to come!
As the calendar flipped to December, Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns signed free agent closer Devin Williams to a three-year, $51 million contract. Williams struggled in the closer role with the New York Yankees in 2025, so the Mets planned to use Williams as a set-up man for Díaz.
However, per ESPN's Jeff Passan, the way the Mets went about the Williams signing put a massive crack in their relationship with Díaz. Passan reported Tuesday night that Díaz, the top relief pitcher on the market, wasn't happy that he "did not get a call giving him a heads up" about the Mets signing another closer.
Then Díaz started looking at Los Angeles because his brother Alexis, who had played in nine games for the Dodgers in 2025 before being DFA'd, told him that "everything there is as great as they say," according to Passan.
Díaz was looking for four or five years. The Dodgers offered him three years, $69 million. MLB.com's Andrew DiComo reported the Mets' final offer was three years, $66 million. Mets officials "indicated they had some room to improve that figure," but before that happened, Díaz took the Dodgers deal instead.
So not only did Díaz elect to go to another top National League contender, the Mets – the notorious big spenders – lost out on him by just three million dollars. Additionally, Díaz did not even give the Mets a chance to match the Dodgers' offer.
The Mets alienated a fan favorite relief pitcher who had been with the club since 2019. Díaz, who posted a 1.63 ERA in 2025 and appeared in the All-Star Game, willingly left.
The back page: THE DAY THE MUSIC DIED
Sounds of silence at Citi as Mets lose beloved Diaz to Dodgers for extra $3M
Read more: https://t.co/c6K9GMwrON pic.twitter.com/zCEXc9td5F
To recap, the Mets sent a fan favorite outfielder packing. The Mets ticked off the top free agent reliever so badly that he left of his own accord.
That's gotta sting.
BUT WAIT, it doesn't even stop there!
With Nimmo and Díaz gone, free agent Pete Alonso was left as the sole longest-tenured Met. He joined the organization via draft in 2016 and debuted in 2019. By the time the 2025 season ended, Alonso's 264 career home runs made him the Mets' all-time home run leader.
Wednesday afternoon, Passan broke the news that Alonso and the Baltimore Orioles were finalizing a five-year, $155 million contract, making Alonso the highest-paid first baseman in MLB.
The Athletic's Will Sammon reported that the Mets – again, the notorious big spenders – never even made Alonso a formal offer.
Why, you ask? Because, per DiComo, "it became clear to them the bidding was heading to places they weren't interested in going."
In other words, Stearns cheaped out. MLB.com's Mark Feinsand reported Tuesday that while the Mets had interest in Alonso, they were "hesitant" to offer the 31-year-old more than three years.
Díaz and Alonso have left in the span of less than 24 hours, and Nimmo was traded just 16 days before that. Two disastrous weeks reshaped the faces and the future of the Mets franchise.
Needless to say, New York is apoplectic at the moment.
I don't CARE how much it cost to bring Pete Alonso back.
HOW DO YOU NOT BRING BACK A LITERAL FAN-FAVORITE?
This is how you lose hope from fans, because frankly, my hope is GONE. pic.twitter.com/JCiI6CCVzO
Mets fans are comparing Stearns to disgraced former Dallas Mavericks GM Nico Harrison; Alonso certainly wasn't on Luka Doncic's level on his own, but I'd argue that combined with Díaz and Nimmo, the organizational impact of their departures is similar.
Let's check in with Frank the Tank!
— Frank Fleming (@NjTank99) December 10, 2025
I'd also recommend tuning into WFAN Sports Radio if you have free time this afternoon. All kinds of attempts at rationalization are going on over there. Season ticket holders are renouncing their loyalty to the franchise. They want Stearns' head on a stick. It's ugly.
Following an NLCS appearance, the Mets won the 2024 Winter Meetings by signing Juan Soto to a record-breaking 15-year, $765 million deal.
Now, following a historic collapse that ended without a playoff berth, the Mets will slink back to Queens as the clear-cut, league-wide losers of the 2025 Winter Meetings, having lost both their marquee free agents.
Steve Cohen had to issue a written apology to his fanbase in September after the Mets missed the postseason. He may have to issue another one before Spring Training even begins.
Mets fans everywhere. I owe you an apology . You did your part by showing up and supporting the team. We didn’t do our part. We will do a post-mortem and figure out the obvious and less obvious reasons why the team didn’t perform up to your and my expectations
We are all feeling…
Oh, and they also missed out on the Kyle Schwarber sweepstakes. LOLMets.
