MMO Roundtable: Reactions to Edwin Díaz Signing With Dodgers

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Mets fans were stunned Tuesday when Edwin Díaz agreed to sign with the two-time reigning World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. The MMO team gave their reactions to the move.

Photo Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Dave Melendi

I was an Edwin Díaz fan and would have liked to see him come back. The trumpets were pure fun. But I think losing him can be overcome. (Starting pitching, please.) This may sound like sour grapes, but his complete lack of concern for holding on baserunners always worried me. I had a sinking feeling it would come back to bite the Mets in the playoffs.

Christian De Block

Reading between the lines, it became evident that Edwin Díaz intended to leave the Mets this offseason, regardless of their offer. Does that make me less frustrated? No, but it does matter within this conversation. It’s upsetting to not re-sign a fan favorite, but the Mets can still get this right. If $22+ million isn’t allocated to Díaz, there should be room in the budget to build a deep, well-rounded bullpen. Three, if not four, more arms are needed. If David Stearns and Steve Cohen make the correct additions, I’ll feel much better going into the 2026 season. But for now, frustration is at the forefront.

Matt Mancuso

History always repeats itself. Just like the 1950s, an established baseball entity escaped the freezing New York spring for the bright lights of Hollywood. Former Met Edwin Díaz pulled his best Brooklyn Dodgers impression Tuesday, parlaying his success in the Metro Area into a multi-million commitment from Los Angeles.Just like the Brandon Nimmo trade, it’s a tough pill to swallow. Díaz meant a lot to the fanbase; memories of him jogging out to Narco blasting will not fade anytime soon. Over the last six seasons, he emerged as a trusted backend arm, a consistent through peaks and valleys of various Mets’ regular-season runs.There’s a bit of revisionist history with Díaz. He quickly lost his closer job upon gaining the role in 2019, was suspended for using 10 games in 2024, missed the entire 2023 campaign, and coughed up a late lead in arguably the Mets’ biggest game in 2024. In 2025, his arsenal clearly declined in effectiveness. (2024 Stuff+: 115; 2025 Stuff+: 110)But still, Díaz shone as the lights burned brighter. He closed out the 2024 NLDS against the Phillies, racked up 58 saves over the last two seasons, saving his best for last: pitching multiple early innings in Game 162 to propel the Mets to the playoffs.It’s understandable to feel betrayed about today’s break-up. But at the end of the day, despite his stint, reports indicate that he didn’t want to stay a Met – he wanted to take his talent and light show to Chavez Ravine. Díaz only pitched about 4% of the Mets’ innings in 2025. He’ll be missed, but as all relievers are, Diaz is replaceable. I don’t expect the Mets to stand pat with their current bullpen configuration, but they better believe in their Plan B.Historically, free agent contracts to an aging reliever have rarely fared well. A four-year commitment for Edwin wasn’t outlandish for the Mets to offer, though it’s tough to fault the Mets when Díaz clearly wanted to depart.

Kai Chang

This fanbase is in full panic mode right now, and I fully understand. But is the combination of the fanbase rioting and the Mets not re-signing Díaz some franchise-altering disaster? No. Has what David Stearns has done for this ballclub been “terrible”? Not at all. Should the Mets have gone beyond three years and $66 million? Sure. But this is more eye-opening than catastrophic. The reports after the signing basically made it clear Díaz just preferred to be a Dodger. And yes — it is the Dodgers. The real concern is what happens when someone chooses the Phillies over the Mets. Or the Red Sox. That’s where the problem starts. One of the most underrated advantages the Dodgers have is that when they call, players pick up the phone eagerly. That’s the part the Mets need to fix, asap. And when the Mets and Dodgers inevitably cross paths in October again, that matchup will carry a little extra edge — and revenge will never feel sweeter.

Mathias Altman-Kurosaki

I am still trying to process what happened, and honestly, I can’t blame the fan base for their reactions. Díaz was a fan favorite and was far and away the best reliever on the free agent market. I had a feeling the Dodgers would be players considering that their bullpen was their biggest weakness, but I wasn’t expecting him to sign so suddenly. The Dodgers have built a Death Star, and I don’t see how anyone can stop them from three-peating right now. The Mets have some serious work to do – they need to either trade for Trevor Megill or sign one of the closers on the market (Robert Suarezis the best option) to alleviate some pressure from Devin Williams. There are still ways for the Mets to improve their roster, but it’s a tall task to replace Díaz.

Mojo Hill

I’m definitely a bit surprised. It’s sad that another key Met is seeing his time in New York abruptly come to an end. The good news is that I think the best version of Devin Williams is about as good as the best version of Edwin Díaz, although Díaz is obviously coming off a way better year. If the reports about Díaz being blindsided by the Williams signing are true, then I think some fair criticism could be leveled at the Mets’ front office for not communicating with Díaz better and working harder to retain him. But it also sounds like maybe he just didn’t want to be a Met anymore, which is maybe a further repercussion of the Mets’ sluggish, disappointing season. Joining the Dodgers is an attractive prospect for any baseball player right now, and if they were offering slightly more money anyway, then it’s basically a no-brainer for Díaz.

Matt Tutrone

A spoonful of sugar won’t help Mets fans swallow this bitter pill, but a big-name acquisition before this week ends might help. I feel angry and betrayed, and I loathe the Dodgers even more now. All the rational points being made to suggest this isn’t as devastating a loss as it may seem are drowned beneath the swirling storm of my emotions. I sure hope Devin Williams bounces back to his old self, and David Stearns can put together a strong bullpen to complement him.

Nick Kalantzopolous

It’s tough to remember the last time there was this much unanimity amongst Mets fans over a move, or lack thereof. Seeing the parameters of the deal made me instantly think, like every other Met fan, “wow, they really chose not to match/better that offer??”So I’m not going to lie and defend the move. It was a missed opportunity, and that’s putting it kindly. But instead, I will say this to put closers in general into perspective: Last year, in Edwin Díaz’s phenomenal season, his “value” according to Fangraphs was just $16M. Where was he when the season was falling apart day in and day out in the fourth inning? Watching from the bullpen. Just as was the case when the 2022 Mets weren’t doing enough winning late in the season. That’s obviously not a critique of Diaz. It just, like I said, puts the role of closer in the correct context. The majority of games are decided before the closer can even have a say, which is why they aren’t paid as much as starters or position players. And when it comes to recent World Series champions, let’s take a look at who threw the last pitch and notice: it’s not a lot of premier closers.

2025: Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Closer Tanner Scott was benched)2024: Walker Buehler

2023: Josh Sborz2022: Ryan Pressly

2021: Will Smith2020 Julio Urías (after Kenley Jansen was benched)2019 Daniel Hudson (after Sean Doolittle was benched)2018: Chris Sale

2017: Charlie Morton2016: Mike Montgomery(after Aroldis Chapman blew the save).

Even after this signing, my overall outlook and expectations of the 2026 Mets haven’t changed, and I think most Mets fans would agree. It’s up to David Stearns to make sure that’s still the case on opening day.

Michelle Ioannou

If I had known last season would’ve been my last time hearing those trumpets while seeing Díaz come out of the bullpen, I would’ve appreciated it so much more. I love when Mets fans come together to feel the same thing – I just hate that when it’s for a reason like this. First Nimmo, now Díaz, I hope Cohen and co. have something big up their sleeves because so far, I don’t like these feelings I’m feeling.

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