The New York Mets closed out Jan. with a monster week, signing free agent shortstop Bo Bichette, and trading a pair of top prospects to the Milwaukee Brewers for starting right-handed ace Freddy Peralta. But according to a longtime MLB insider, the Amazins may not be done amazing their fans just yet.
As the calendar turns to February, meaning that spring training is less than two weeks away, the Mets may have one last major move left in them this offseason — a move that could stabilize what, despite the addition of Peralta, continues to look like a starting rotation filled with more questions than answers.
As the offseason winds down, about 30 major league free agents remain unsigned. At the top of that group, according to Gabe Lacques of USA Today writing on Saturday, stands former Houston Astros left-hander Framber Valdez. According to Spotrac, the 32-year-old comes with an estimated market value of nearly $200 million, or $33.3 million per year over six years.
“Not sure if he’ll sniff the Max Fried rent district for lefty starters but it never hurts when you’re literally one of two on the market,” wrote Lacques. “Valdez is consistently right around 200 innings, has a championship pedigree and suppresses the home run ball.”
Valdez won two games for the Astros in their victorious 2022 World Series, and has pitched in 17 career postseason games with a 4.34 ERA and an 8-7 win-loss record.
Even with Peralta, the Mets’ rotation features a rookie in Nolan McLean, a converted reliever in Clay Holmes, and two pitchers coming off injury-riddled seasons in Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea.
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That apparent instability is what led longtime MLB insider Mark Feinsand of MLB.com on Saturday to name the Mets as a free agent destination for Valdez.
“The Mets have also been closely connected to Valdez all offseason, though their recent trade for Peralta has lessened their need for a frontline starter,” Feinsand wrote. “Still, given McLean’s inexperience and the fact that Holmes is only in his second season as a starter, New York could look to add another proven arm to the rotation.”
Valdez fits the description and is also a reliable workhorse, turning in more than 190 innings in three of his last four seasons — and 176 1/3 in the other one, 2024. An All-Star in 2022 and 2023, Valdez also recorded two complete games in 2025, tying him with two other pitchers for the Major League lead.
Feinsand noted, however, that Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns has usually frowned upon long-term contracts for pitchers, so Valdez would need to be open to a short-term deal with opt-out clauses for the Mets to have a realistic shot at signing the 32-year-old southpaw.
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