Freddy Peralta is itching to get started with the Mets and feed off the high expectations and pressure that comes with pitching in New York.
Whether or not he will call it home beyond this year, though, remains to be seen.
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Peralta, the new anchor in the Mets rotation after he was acquired in a trade with the Brewers last week, arrives in Queens with one year left before free agency.
But when asked about the potential of signing a contract extension, the right-hander pitched around it.
“I just got here,” he said Tuesday on an introductory Zoom call with reporters. “I think that I got to see around, I have to share time with my teammates and think about different ideas, learn about everybody, coaches, the organization in general and then we can see.”
David Stearns last week declined to comment on whether an extension has been discussed with Peralta, but the president of baseball operations indicated the trade was made with the understanding that it could just be a short-term relationship.
Still, this is now the second time Stearns has traded for Peralta — the first when he was a 19-year-old acquired by the Brewers — which the now 29-year-old right-hander acknowledged “says a lot.”
This time Stearns is adding Peralta to the rotation as an established, high-end pitcher — costing the Mets prospects Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat — who should elevate their chances heading into 2026.
Freddy Peralta pitched to a 2.70 ERA across 33 starts with 204 strikeouts in a career-high 176 ²/₃ innings last season. AP
“I’m really happy to be here in New York and represent the New York Mets organization,” Peralta said. “It’s a different market [than Milwaukee], a different city, there’s a lot more fans, a lot more people watching. Being honest, I like the competition that we’re going to face here. I’ve been around, watching for years what it is to be part of that big-market team. I’m excited to be part of the team and I can’t wait.”
Peralta, a two-time All-Star, pitched to a 2.70 ERA across 33 starts with 204 strikeouts in a career-high 176 ²/₃ innings last season.
It marked the third straight season in which he has made 30-plus starts, demonstrating a durability that he said was the “most important thing” to him.
And while pitching in Milwaukee and the NL Central is not the same as pitching in Queens and the NL East, Peralta has also made nine playoff appearances, which he believes should prepare him for his new opportunity.
“I think it’s going to help a lot, because the game during the playoffs, it’s on a different level,” he said. “I think probably New York is the same level — every game feels like that. I remember Opening Day in 2025 against the Yankees, it’s how it felt. I felt the same and it was crazy, the vibes and all that, the energy of the fans. Even being the first day, I felt that. I think that’s going to feel [like it] every five days in New York.”
The Dominican Republic native — who said he was still unsure if he would participate in the WBC this spring because of “personal reasons” — said he was looking forward to pitching in front of a strong Latin community that New York offers.
“There’s a huge challenge for me because I know how we are, the Latinos,’ he said. “I know that we have that inside of us, that hunger to win every time. I think I’m going to take that as a challenge to get better, to feel better, to get better every five days, to give my best and to make adjustments quicker. I know the people there are thinking the same way that I’m thinking: we just want to win. That’s what I’m going to work for, to get better and be ready for that.”
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