Mets Daily January 11, 2026

Mets In The News Today

The Mets checked in on MacKenzie Gore. Actual contact with the Nationals, not just “internet smoke.” Gore’s a 26-year-old lefty with swing-and-miss, and the Mets clearly want innings that don’t come with a prayer candle.
Kyle Tucker + Framber Valdez are still sitting out there. The “big bat / big arm” aisle is getting picked clean, and the Mets are still browsing like it’s Costco samples.
Opening Day just got louder. Mets vs. Pirates on March 26 is now part of an NBC/Peacock showcase window. Great for eyeballs, brutal if you wanted to ease into the season quietly.
Juan Soto is publicly going after the glove part of his game. Love the accountability. Also love the fact that he’s saying it out loud, because 2025’s defense was… a situation.
Luisangel Acuña just did something cartoonish in Venezuela: 4 HR, 7 RBI in one game. That’s not “nice winter-ball moment.” That’s “someone check the baseballs” production.

Alex Bregman is off the board: Cubs, 5 years / $175M. Chicago spent like it remembered the NL Central exists.
Max Kepler got popped: 80-game suspension after a positive PED test. That’s a season-altering headline, not a footnote.
Ketel Marte isn’t getting dealt despite the rumor mill doing its usual thing.
Rockies made a move: acquired Jake McCarthy from Arizona for Josh Grosz.
Depth shuffling season continues: the kind of deals that don’t trend, then somehow matter in July.

Braves

Claimed George Soriano off waivers for bullpen depth. Atlanta stays annoying, even on quiet days.
Brought back Tyler Kinley on a 1-year, $4.25M deal after declining his option. Businesslike.

Phillies

The chatter around Andrew Painter is heating up, with a very real warning attached: don’t hand him a rotation spot unless you’ve got a Plan B that isn’t “good vibes.”

Marlins

Rotation planning is in flux after moving Edward Cabrera. They’re re-stacking the deck and hoping it doesn’t fold in April.

Nationals

Claimed Paxton Shultz off waivers.
Took calls on MacKenzie Gore, at least enough for the Mets to get a conversation started. Division trades cost extra. Always.

1973: The designated hitter arrives. The NL took its sweet time, obviously.
1988: The Mets announced they’d retire Tom Seaver’s #41. As they should.
2022: The Mets announced they’d retire Keith Hernandez’s #17. Defense, swagger, and “don’t throw the ball to the wrong base” excellence.
2021: Francisco Lindor was officially introduced as a Met. The “new face of the franchise” era got real that day.
2017: The Mets avoided arbitration with Zack Wheeler on a one-year deal. Different timeline, different everything.
2012: The Mets inked Miguel Batista and Fernando Cabrera to minor-league deals. Spring training lottery tickets, the original scratch-offs.
2013: More January roster tinkering, because Mets winters have always been part hope, part chaos, part spreadsheet.

Juan Soto’s 2025 defense, by the numbers: -12 Outs Above Average (tied for worst among MLB outfielders). Even “just get to average” changes the feel of a whole outfield.
Freddy Peralta (the kind of arm this staff actually needs): 17–6, 2.70 ERA, 176.2 IP, 204 K, 1.08 WHIP in 2025. One year left at $8M before free agency. That’s why the price hurts.
MacKenzie Gore (the name the Mets called about): 4.17 ERA, 185 K, 1.35 WHIP in 2025. Stuff plays, command swings the outcomes. The Mets are clearly shopping for upside that can still take the ball every fifth day.
Luisangel Acuña’s whiplash note: 0 MLB homers in 2025, then drops four in one Venezuelan game. Development isn’t linear, but that’s a pretty loud data point heading into a make-or-break roster year.