Mets predicted to add $255.5 million four-time All-Star after missing on Juan Soto….

The New York Mets seem determined to return to Major League Baseball’s leading payroll one way or another.

After maintaining baseball’s highest payrolls in 2023 and 2024, the Mets are currently on the hook for just the tenth-highest payroll among all teams at about $140 million in 2025. But as they negotiate with Juan Soto and any number of other free agents or highly-paid trade candidates, the Mets could soon climb back up to the leading spot.

Projecting the price tags for baseball’s premier free agents this winter, Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report wrote that if the Mets are unable to lock up Soto to a major contract, they would pivot to the second most-coveted player on the free agency board in Corbin Burnes.

“All the way back in July, I predicted the Baltimore Orioles would extend Corbin Burnes with a seven-year, $255.5 million deal, which would represent an AAV a tick higher than the $36 million Gerrit Cole is earning annually on his deal with the New York Yankees,” Reuter explained. “A reunion with the Orioles no longer looks like the most likely outcome for his free agency, but he could end up being the immediate fallback plan for the Boston Red Sox or New York Mets if they miss out on Juan Soto.”

Reuter predicted the Mets as the ultimate landing spot for Burnes and added that he expects the ace to land a seven-year, $255.5 million contract.

Such a deal would make Burnes just the eighth pitcher in MLB history to earn a $200 million-plus contract, as ESPN’s Jeff Passan noted. But the numbers say that could be well deserved.

In seven big-league seasons, Burnes has a career 3.19 ERA in 138 total starts. He’s made the All-Star game in each of the last four seasons and took home the Cy Young Award in 2021. This past season, he maintained a 2.92 ERA in 32 total starts, demonstrating highly valuable durability and effectiveness.

If the Mets do land him, Burnes would instantly become their frontline ace. As of now, the rotation consists of Kodai Senga, Frankie Montas, David Peterson and Paul Blackburn. So, if the Mets hope to build on their run to the National League Championship Series in 2024, the addition of an impact starter like Burnes seems like a good, if expensive, start.