Mets Daily January 12, 2026

Mets In The News Today

Light news day. Not a lot of fresh Mets-specific movement in the last 24 hours, but a few real signals are still worth clocking.

The MacKenzie Gore chatter is still circulating. No confirmed “we’re close” momentum, but it’s the kind of name that keeps popping up because the Mets are clearly hunting controllable innings.
Luisangel Acuña went nuclear in Venezuela: 4 HR, 7 RBI in one game. That’s the kind of winter-league outlier that makes player dev people re-open the file and start arguing again.
The Mets are stuck in the “big bat / big arm” aisle. The market’s moving around them, so every day without a decisive add starts to feel less like patience and more like procrastination.

Alex Bregman to the Cubs: 5 years, $175M, with major deferrals. One of the biggest offseason dominoes actually fell, and it didn’t land anywhere near Queens.
Rockies acquired Jake McCarthy from Arizona (for Josh Grosz). Real outfield speed/defense moved, which matters because “depth trades” are how rosters quietly get better.
The tone of the market: teams are making clean, decisive moves. The clubs that wait too long usually end up shopping with the lights off.

Braves

Re-signed Tyler Kinley on a one-year deal with a 2027 club option. Not sexy, but it’s another “we’re not letting the bullpen rot” move.

Phillies

Quiet stretch. Which usually means they’re either plotting something or enjoying the fact that half the division is still arguing with itself.

Marlins

No fresh headline today, but their pitching picture stays unstable and that keeps them in “sell or pretend” mode.

Nationals

The Gore talk remains the headline by default. Inside-the-division trades cost extra, and Washington has zero reason to do the Mets a favor.

January 12, 2024: The Mets announced the signing of Sean Manaea. One of those reminders that January is when rotations get built, or ignored, or “we’ll fix it later” gets said out loud.

Acuña’s winter-league eruption: 4 homers in one night is rare enough that MLB wrote it up as a “recent four-homer club” moment. That’s not normal variance, that’s fireworks.
Jake McCarthy career snapshot: Speed/defense profile, .260 career average entering this move, and Colorado clearly wanted athletic outfield help.
Soto defense reality check (recent context): 2025 metrics had him grading poorly in right field by advanced measures (OAA/FRV). Even a small improvement changes the feel of an outfield, especially in tight games.