Mets Trade Freddy Peralta to Rays in Four-Player Deal

The New York Mets have traded starting pitcher Freddy Peralta months after acquring him from the Milwaukee Brewers. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Mets have made yet another move in their sell-off, and this is a big one, as Freddy Peralta is headed to the Rays in exchange for three prospects.

After acquiring Freddy Peralta along with Tobias Myers from the Brewers this offseason in exchange for prospects Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat, New York has turned around and traded him. The deal sends the two-time All-Star to the Rays in exchange for outfielder Aidan Smith, second baseman Émilien Pitre and righty Gary Gill Hill. The 30-year-old righty will be a free agent after the season, but will join a loaded Tampa Bay rotation that already includes Drew Rasmussen, Shane McClanahan and Nick Martinez.

Peralta was supposed to solidify the Mets’ rotation and bump them up the pecking order in the National League. He was coming off a career-best season and looked like a true ace. Unfortunately, along with the rest of the roster, Peralta has been a massive disappointment in 2026.

Through 22 starts, Peralta is 5–9 with a 4.99 ERA, a 1.48 WHIP, and 113 strikeouts against 48 walks in 113 2/3 innings. His strikeout rate (22.1%) and FIP (4.46) are both career worsts.

The Rays are hoping a change of scenery and a playoff race will revive him.

Freddy Peralta’s career outlook

In 2025, Peralta was at his best for the Brewers. He went 17–6 with a 2.70 ERA, a 1.08 WHIP, and 204 strikeouts against 66 walks in 176 2/3 innings. He led the National League in wins and ranked fourth in ERA, strikeouts per nine (10.39) and WAR (5.5), and was ninth in FIP (3.85).

That continued a pattern of excellence for Peralta, who was one of the NL’s best starters from 2021 through last season. In that time he went 54–34 with a 3.30 ERA, a K rate of 28.5% and 14.8 WAR.

The Mets were expecting to get that guy when they made the deal to acquire Peralta; instead, they wound up with a guy who struggled to keep them in games. Opposing batters are producing an xBA of .235 against him, up from .206 last season.

Peralta is a fastball-dominant pitcher, throwing his four-seamer 53% of the time. In 2026, opposing batters are hitting .270 off the pitch, while slugging .429. Those numbers are up from .209 and .381, respectively, in 2025.

Perhaps more alarming, Peralta’s once dominant changeup has taken a major step back this year. Opposing batters are hitting .280 and slugging .449 against it compared to .173 and .271 in 2025. His curveball has similarly gotten worse, with batters hitting .250 against it compared to .189 in 2025, while they're slugging .500 compared to .300 last season.

The velocity and movement profiles of his secondary offerings haven’t changed too much, but his arm angle has dropped from 38 degrees to 33. That's significantly lower, and his extension has dropped as well. In 2025, he averaged 6.8 feet of extension, which ranked in the 81st percentile. This season, that has dropped to 6.5 feet, which is in the 54th percentile.

Those changes may have something to do with why his first-pitch strike percentage has dropped to a full season career-low 57.8%. He was at 63.3% in 2025 and had been above 61% every season since ‘23. He has been pitching from behind all season, which has hurt his results.

It's possible that a few minor tweaks could improve his effectiveness.

Scouting report for the Mets’ new prospects

In exchange for a few months of Peralta, the Mets landed three prospects who all carry some value.

Aidan Smith was a fourth-round pick in the 2023 draft by the Mariners and was sent to Tampa in 2024 as part of the Randy Arozarena deal. He’s a 22-year-old outfielder who is an excellent fielder with a ton of speed. While he has good raw power, there’s a ton of swing-and-miss in his game. He’s in High A for the second season in a row. In 59 games over three levels in 2026 he’s slashing .209/.281/.391 with 10 home runs, 16 stolen bases and a 68 wRC+. He has to iron out his 30.1% strikeout rate if he wants to reach the big leagues.

Gary Gill Hill has an elite name, and decent stuff on the mound. A sixth-rounder in 2022, he has a mid-90s heater and a biting cutter and a decent slider. The 21-year-old’s changeup isn’t worth discussing at this point. He has decent control and has a fantastic walk rate this season (5.0%). He’s was Tampa’s 26th-ranked prospect according to MLB Pipeline, because of what looks like a lack of long-term upside. His stuff is fine but he doesn’t have a true go-to out pitch, which is why he’s sporting a 4.43 ERA and opponents are hitting .307 off of him through 15 Double A starts in 2026.

Émilien Pitre is an interesting prospect. A lefty-hitting infielder, he played well for the Canadian junior national team which led him to Kentucky where he turned himself into a second-round pick in 2024. He's average all the way around without a true standout tool. Things have clicked this season, as he's slashing .323/.451/.492, with a 155 wRC+ in 37 games at Double A. At 23, he's on the older side for that level. He's makes consistent contact but doesn't have a lot of power, limiting his upside.

The Mets got three players who have usable tools but, as of now, there’s no standout in this group.

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