The New York Mets have one of the largest free agent classes in baseball this offseason and they are prioritizing closer Edwin Díaz and center fielder Brandon Nimmo, reports SNY. New York's other likely free agents include ace Jacob deGrom (opt out), righties Chris Bassitt and Taijuan Walker (player option), and setup men Seth Lugo, Trevor May, and Adam Ottavino.

Here's what Mets GM Billy Eppler said about the team's interest in retaining Díaz during a recent appearance on the New York Post's The Show podcast (transcript via SNY):

"Edwin was nothing short of fantastic this season and it was very comforting to watch him come into a game," Eppler said. "I really appreciated, and I know Buck did too, the usability in some different roles. We saw him pitch in the eighth inning a number of times over the course of the season and he was a very reliable and impactful player for us over the course of the season.

"Would we like to have him back? Absolutely. Are we going to be able to get something worked out? Potentially. But he's reached a point in his career where he's afforded himself the opportunity with the ability to look around if he so chooses, but he knows how we feel about him and we know how he feels about us and how comfortable he was this year. He expressed that and I'm not sure if he expressed that specifically to Buck [Showalter], but I passed it along because when I was talking to his agent, he mentioned that. Edwin can provide a big boost to the bullpen and like I said, be used in a number of roles. But we'll see what the coming day and coming weeks provides."