Rays Trade for Freddy Peralta, Send Three Prospects to Mets

The Tampa Bay Rays have acquired veteran starting pitcher Freddy Peralta from the New York Mets, a move confirmed on Sunday, August 2, just over 24 hours before Major League Baseball’s trade deadline. In exchange, the Mets will receive three minor league prospects: outfielder Aidan Smith, infielder Emilien Pitre, and right-handed pitcher Gary Gill Hill.

Peralta, 30, joins the Rays after a disappointing half-season with the Mets, where he posted a 4.99 earned run average across 22 starts. His struggles in New York stood in stark contrast to his performance just a year earlier. In 2025 with the Milwaukee Brewers, Peralta was an All-Star, finishing with a 2.70 ERA over 176.2 innings and placing fifth in National League Cy Young Award voting. The Mets had acquired him last offseason in a deal for prospects Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat, hoping he would anchor their rotation.

For the first-place Rays, the trade addresses a need for starting pitching depth as the team pursues a postseason run. Entering play on Sunday, Tampa Bay held a 3.5-game lead in the American League East with a record of 65-45. The team’s rotation, which includes Drew Rasmussen, Shane McClanahan, and Nick...