3 Mets players who redeemed themselves after a bad first year in Flushing

2) NY Mets player who redeemed himself: Edwin Diaz

When the Mets had acquired Edwin Diaz from the Seattle Mariners in a massive blockbuster trade in December 2018 that also brought back second basemen Robinson Cano there was much skepticism about the deal originally. Not for the fact that the Mets were acquiring Diaz who was coming off of one of the greatest seasons for a reliever in baseball history, but for the fact that the Mets were parting with their top prospect at the time in Jarred Kelenic who was considered one of the best in the game.

Diaz who had produced 57 saves with a 1.96 ERA and 124 strikeouts in 73.1 innings the previous season with the Mariners struggled mightily in his first season in Flushing. It was an utter disaster for Diaz in 2019 as he allowed a Major League record of 15 ninth-inning home runs and had a ballooned ERA of 5.59 in which many Mets fans relentlessly booed Diaz off the mound more times than I can remember.

Was Diaz simply damaged goods or were the lights just too bright for him upon his first season in Flushing? Well, Diaz responded in a big way during the shortened 2020 campaign in which he recorded a 1.75 ERA and 50 strikeouts over 25.2 innings. Diaz would use that season with no fans in the seats as a building block to getting where he is today.

Diaz is now arguably considered the best reliever in all of baseball and just inked a 5-year $102 million deal with the Mets this offseason which will lock him in as the Mets' closer for the next. half-decade. It all has worked out for Diaz and the Mets after his disastrous first season and will be a huge part of the Mets' success for a long time.