JACOB DEGROM

Outfielder Joc Pederson and left-hander Martín Pérez were the only players to accept $19.65 million qualifying offers from their former teams and end their free agency.

Jacob deGrom is the best pitcher on earth when he's healthy. Steve Cohen is MLB's wealthiest owner. But there's no guarantee deGrom winds up back with the Mets.

The 2022 New York Mets have more free agents than any other MLB team, Jacob deGrom and Brandon Nimmo among them. What will they do, and how much could they spend?

First baseman Anthony Rizzo became a free agent again when he declined his $16 million option with the New York Yankees for 2023.

In the hallways and meeting rooms of Resorts World, baseball general managers are starting to weigh bigger bets than the wagers placed on tables and machines in the casino downstairs.

Jacob deGrom, Carlos Correa, Xander Bogaerts and Carlos Rodón have turned down player options, joining a free agent market that includes Aaron Judge, Trea Turner and Dansby Swanson.

Aaron Judge, Edwin Díaz, Trea Turner, Dansby Swanson and Xander Bogaerts were among 131 players who became free agents as baseball’s business season began just hours after the final out of the World Series.

Baseball’s biggest spenders looked spent.

Joe Musgrove brushed off chants of “Cheater!”.

The panic meter exploded after Friday's embarrassing loss, but the New York Mets staved off elimination with a huge win over the Padres on Saturday.

The New York Mets held off the San Diego Padres and put elimination on the backburner Saturday night with a 7-3 victory to bring their series to a deciding Game 3.

Pete Alonso launched a tiebreaking homer and Jacob deGrom pitched well enough to help save the New York Mets’ season with a 7-3 victory over the San Diego Padres that evened their wild-card playoff series at one game apiece.

The New York Mets find themselves on the verge of getting aced out.

Josh Bell and Manny Machado smashed two of San Diego’s four home runs off Max Scherzer, and the Padres romped past the New York Mets 7-1 in their playoff opener.

For two teams that finished second fiddle in their divisions, the Padres and Mets bring an awful lot of star power into the playoffs.

The entire Major League Baseball playoff picture is now set.

Dansby Swanson and Matt Olson homered for the third straight game, Travis d’Arnaud hit a go-ahead two-run single in the third inning, and Atlanta Braves beat the New York Mets 5-3, completing a three-game sweep of their NL East rival and taking a two-game lead in the division with three games to play.

Dansby Swanson and Matt Olson homered off Max Scherzer, lifting the Atlanta Braves to a crucial 4-2 victory over the New York Mets and a one-game lead in the NL East.

Austin Riley and Matt Olson hit back-to-back homers off Jacob deGrom in the second inning and Dansby Swanson later connected off the Mets ace as the Atlanta Braves beat New York 5-2 to move into a tie for the NL East lead.

Two months into the season, it looked like the New York Mets were headed for an NL East runaway.

Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies hoped to be in this position.

Pete Alonso homered, doubled and drove in five runs to set the team record for RBIs, Max Scherzer pitched six sharp innings and the New York Mets routed the Oakland Athletics 13-4 Sunday to hold their NL East lead. The Mets remained 1 1/2 games ahead of Atlanta. New York has won eight of 10, and plays the Braves on the road next weekend in a three-game series.

Chris Bassitt pitched eight sharp innings in his return to Oakland, Eduardo Escobar hit a grand slam and the New York Mets extended their lead in the NL East by beating the Athletics 9-2.

The Mets are on track to have baseball’s highest payroll for the first time since 1989.

Jacob deGrom continued his historic stretch on Sunday, and he broke an MLB record that has stood since 1914. He also struck out 13 guys for the fun of it.

Jacob deGrom struck out 13 batters — the most ever for a Mets pitcher who threw five or fewer innings — but didn’t factor into the decision.

Brandon Nimmo saved Jacob deGrom and the New York Mets with a breathtaking catch atop the center-field fence, and Edwin Díaz entered to Timmy Trumpet’s live horn at pulsing Citi Field before closing out the Los Angeles Dodgers for a scintillating 2-1 victory.

Aaron Judge hit a 453-foot drive halfway up the bleachers for his 48th home run and added an RBI single during a seventh-inning rally, boosting the Yankees past the Mets 4-2 for a two-game sweep in a Subway Series both teams hope was a World Series prelude.

Brett Baty homered his first time up in the big leagues, Starling Marte went deep twice and the New York Mets held off the Braves 9-7 to snap Atlanta’s eight-game winning streak.

Jacob deGrom struck out 10 in six dominant innings and Edwin Díaz earned his 200th career save, helping the New York Mets beat the Philadelphia Phillies 1-0.

The Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets mostly ceded the spotlight at the trade deadline.

Jacob deGrom struck out 12 and carried a perfect game into the sixth inning of his second start all season, pitching the New York Mets past the Atlanta Braves 5-2 for their 12th victory in 14 games.

Max Scherzer tied a season high with 11 strikeouts over seven innings and the New York Mets beat the sloppy Atlanta Braves 6-2 to complete a doubleheader sweep.

Jacob deGrom allowed one run on three hits and struck out six in five innings in his season debut before a bullpen meltdown cost the New York Mets in a 5-1 loss to the Washington Nationals.

The Juan Soto sweepstakes come down to the wire, with baseball’s trade deadline fast approaching at 6 p.m. EDT.

Starling Marte singled home the winning run in the ninth inning, and the New York Mets beat the crosstown Yankees 3-2 for a two-game sweep of their Subway Series.

Mets ace Jacob deGrom pitched four innings Wednesday for Triple-A Syracuse, finishing strong after a shaky start in what is expected to be his last minor league rehab outing before rejoining New York’s rotation.

Mets star pitchers Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom are both set to start, albeit not in the same ballpark.

The players’ association has rejected what Major League Baseball called its final offer for an international draft, a move that will keep direct draft-pick compensation in place for free agents and likely limit the market for some older players.

Pete Alonso hit a go-ahead, three-run homer off Joe Musgrove and had four RBIs to retake the major league lead, leading the New York Mets over the San Diego Padres 8-5.

The market for a free agent group that includes Anthony Rizzo, J.

Mets ace Jacob deGrom will make at least one more minor league rehab start before rejoining New York’s rotation.

New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom is nearing a return from a stress reaction in his right scapula after throwing 60 pitches across five innings in a simulated game Thursday at the team's complex in Florida.

New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom has pushed back a simulated game after experiencing muscle soreness in his right shoulder.

Max Scherzer pitched seven strong innings, Luis Guillorme homered and drove in two runs, and the New York Mets beat Max Fried and the Atlanta Braves 4-1 in the opening game of their National League East showdown.

The last time Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Kyle Gibson faced the St. Louis Cardinals, they hit four consecutive home runs off him in the first inning.

New York Mets ace Max Scherzer returns to a major league mound for the first time since May 18 when the NL East leaders play at Cincinnati on Tuesday night.

New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom struck out five of the six batters he faced and threw 18 of 24 pitches for strikes Sunday night in his first minor league rehab start for Class A St. Lucie.

The order was signed Friday, and authorities visited an upscale neighborhood in the north coastal town of Dorado where the singer lives to try to serve the order, police spokesman Axel Valencia said. It was not immediately known who requested the restraining order.

Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout has struck out in seven straight at-bats during a tough series in Houston.

New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom is finally ready to begin a minor league rehab assignment.

Justin Verlander pitched two-hit ball for eight innings, light-hitting backup catcher Jason Castro lined a two-run homer in the ninth and the Houston Astros beat the Mets 2-0 to send New York to its first three-game losing streak this season.

Francisco Lindor homered after being surprised by his mom’s first visit to see him at Citi Field, Pete Alonso slugged a grand slam during an eventful sixth inning and the New York Mets beat the Miami Marlins 10-4.

Philadelphia Phillies interim manager Rob Thomson tries to extend his unbeaten run when Arizona visits Citizens Bank Park on Friday night.

Injured Mets ace Max Scherzer has confirmed that his dog bit his pitching hand this week, but he says the wound won’t slow his recovery from an oblique strain.

San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler says he might return to the field for the national anthem in recognition of Memorial Day when his team opens a three-game series at Philadelphia.

Mets ace Jacob deGrom says his injured right shoulder blade feels “completely normal” and he’s waiting for New York’s medical staff to clear him to resume throwing off a mound.

Reeling from a 10-game road trip that saw them lose eight times, the Dodgers have lost their grip on the top spot in USA TODAY's MLB Power Rankings.