Edwin Diaz spurning the NY Mets could’ve been so much worse than it was

It’s becoming more evident that Edwin Diaz had little interest in coming back to the New York Mets. The reasons are so plentiful, both from a “grass is greener on the other side” theme to an upset lover who saw the Mets add Devin Williams while still flirting with him about getting back together.

ESPN’s Jose Castillo covered everything leading up to the break-up. There was only one other offer on the table and it came from the Atlanta Braves. A five-year offer that didn’t meet his criteria of less deferred money and at least $20 million per year, the Braves’ theft of Diaz could have made this situation far uglier.

Imagine the rage if Edwin Diaz chose the Braves over the Mets

A five year deal from the Braves probably would have included a smaller yearly salary and some deferred payments to allow them the financial flexibility they often seem to desire. This is a team that likes to lock up players early and rarely goes after the monster signing in free agency. It has worked well for them with the biggest problem being they’ve come away with a single championship in the last 30 years. Often invited to the wedding but never asked to make a toast, they’re a regularly competitive club that has been reluctant to handcuff themselves to too many major contracts.

The Braves made out well in the end by first re-signing closer Raisel Iglesias and then adding Robert Suarez in free agency. Suarez seemed to be the secondary choice to Diaz and might have actually saved them from any sort of closer controversy. He’ll reportedly take on a setup role in Atlanta while allowing Iglesias to begin the year as the closer.

Diaz to the Braves actually does make a lot of sense if we believe some of the reasons as to why he chose to leave the Mets. As Mike Puma stated, his brother Alexis Diaz praised the Dodgers’ infrastructure. Alexis played for the Braves briefly last year, too. Furthermore, it’s the Braves who hired Jeremy Hefner whose dismissal by the Mets was another reason cited as to why he was unhappy.

The rich got richer with the Diaz signing, but this does feel like a small win; like beating a chicken in a game of tic tac toe. We’re still dusting ourselves off from losing Diaz to anyone. At least we’re not stitching ourselves up like we would be if Diaz had stayed in the NL East and made the Braves his new place to call home for a half-decade.