A day after watching former stalwarts Pete Alonso and Edwin Díaz join their new squads, the Mets prepared to add a significant piece to their own roster on Saturday. New York agreed with free-agent infielder Jorge Polanco on a two-year deal, according to a report from Will Sammon of the Athletic. The team has not confirmed the deal, which is worth $40 million over the two years according to multiple reports including MLB Network insider Jon Heyman.
Per Heyman, Polanco is expected to play multiple positions but mainly first base and designated hitter. The Mets have Francisco Lindor at shortstop and Marcus Semien, acquired from the Rangers in the Brandon Nimmo deal earlier this offseason, at second base.
After a poor Mariners debut season in 2024, Polanco was back to his old ways in 2025 — and he delivered an epic postseason performance to cap things off.
The 32-year-old switch-hitter had his best offensive year since 2021 with the Twins, posting a .265/.326/.495 slash line (.821 OPS) with 26 home runs and 78 RBIs. He got off to a scorching start, hitting nine home runs by the end of April and owning an OPS over 1.000 as late as mid-May, and he picked things back up at the end of the year after a midseason slump.
Polanco did not receive a qualifying offer from the Mariners after the season, so there is no Draft pick compensation attached to him, or penalty for signing him.
In 2025, Polanco looked like the player the Mariners expected when they acquired him from the Twins during the 2023-24 offseason. He batted just .213 with a .651 OPS in his first season with Seattle, including just a .606 OPS at home, and his -10 Outs Above Average at second base ranked last among 37 qualifying players at the position. Polanco was primarily deployed as the Mariners’ designated hitter in 2025, starting 87 games at DH, 34 at second base (-1 OAA in 2025) and five at third base. At the plate, he flipped the script in home games, batting .288 with 15 homers and a .902 OPS at pitcher-friendly T-Mobile Park.
Polanco debuted at age 20 with the Twins in 2014 and spent his first 10 MLB seasons with Minnesota. In his 12-year career, he owns a .263/.330/.442 slash line with 154 career home runs. He has a .787 career OPS as a left-handed hitter and a .737 OPS batting right-handed.
