2025 Report Card: David Peterson, SP

Player Data: 30 (08/03/1995), B/T: L/L
Primary Stats: 30 G, 30 GS, 9-6, 4.22 ERA, 168 2/3 IP, 1.370 WHIP, 150 SO, 65 BB,
Advanced Stats: 95 ERA+, 3.49 FIP, 3.73 xFIP, 4.51 xERA, 8.0 SO/9, 3.47 BB/9, 20.7% SO%, 9.0% BB%, 1.4 bWAR, 3.1 fWAR

Grade: B-

2025 Review

Giving a B- grade to someone who made the All-Star team for the first time in his career might feel out of place. But when you consider how things went for David Peterson down the stretch, when the team desperately needed quality starts, I think it’s fair. Entering 2025, expectations were high for the left-hander. Peterson finished the 2024 season in great form, playing a massive role in the Mets’ run to the NLCS. His 2.90 ERA in 121 innings throughout the regular season, followed up by a 2.92 ERA in 12 1/3 postseason innings, set him up for a big role the following year. Peterson was given that role and early on, he thrived in the biggest way possible.

The Mets’ starting rotation got off to a roaring start, providing much more than initially expected. That group included Peterson. Over his first 11 starts, he was 4-2 with a 2.69 ERA, including six quality starts during that stretch. To that point, he and Kodai Senga both pitched like frontend guys. Then, the highlight of Peterson’s season came on June 11. He threw a complete game shutout against the Washington Nationals, allowing just six hits and striking out six. That gave him a season-best 2.49 ERA at the time.

Peterson made the All-Star as a replacement for San Francisco Giants starter Robbie Ray, and deservedly so. At the break, he owned a 6-4 record with a 3.06 ERA across 18 starts. Peterson was pitching to contact, but fortunately, a lot of it was soft contact. That allowed him to have the type of success he had throughout the early months of the year. However, shortly after that, the results changed drastically.

He finished off the month of July with two consecutive quality starts against the Cincinnati Reds and the Giants. But August is where things began to unravel. Over six starts, he pitched to a 6.68 ERA in 31 innings. Peterson ran into some tough luck, owning a 3.36 FIP over that stretch. But he also got himself into trouble with an increased number of walks. Unfortunately, those results only worsened in September.

Peterson couldn’t figure it out down the stretch, pitching to a staggering 9.72 ERA over the final month of the season. His final start of the year was as rough as it got. 1 1/3 innings pitched, five runs, five hits and just one strikeout against the Chicago Cubs on September 23. Ironically, the Mets somehow managed to win the game 9-7. However, the overutilization of the bullpen ultimately came back to haunt them later in the final week, a development that unfortunately ended the team’s season. Peterson had a fantastic first half, carrying over the success he had in 2024. But when the team was looking for a starter to stop the bleeding, he failed to do so. It became evidently clear that he simply ran out of gas.

2026 Overview

Peterson has one year of arbitration left before being set to become a free agent in 2027. The starting rotation could look a lot different at the beginning of next season. With that being said, I expect Peterson to remain a critical piece of that group. As mentioned above, it just seemed like he ran out of gas in August and September. Prior to 2025, he had never thrown more than 121 innings in any season. It’s possible with a six-man rotation that his spot can be skipped once or twice next season, just to keep him a bit fresher. I think an interesting question is whether the Mets will attempt to sign Peterson to an extension this winter. That will certainly be something to watch. Nonetheless, expect Peterson to be a part of the rotation come 2026.

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