The New York Mets will face a key David Peterson decision in the coming days. They can’t afford to make the same mistake twice; it’s costing them. In five starts this year, Peterson owns an ERA of 8.10 and has issued 13 walks in 23 1/3 innings pitched. If you take away his first start, which came on the second game of the season, his ERA balloons to 10.50 in 18 innings. But in three appearances out of the bullpen as a long reliever, Peterson has pitched to a 2.45 ERA in 11 innings and has struck out nine batters. That ERA should actually be better (more on that later). See where this is going? The Mets must permanently move Peterson to the bullpen.
David Peterson Decision: Mets Must Make Peterson a Permanent Reliever
After his first four starts of the season, the Mets decided to move Peterson to the bullpen on April 19. They used Tobias Myers, acquired in the Freddy Peralta trade, as the opener, and Peterson followed. The lefty threw 3 2/3 scoreless innings and did not walk a single batter in Chicago. That performance was a much-needed confidence boost to not only him, but to the Mets, too. It was a sign of relief as well.
So the club kept him in the bullpen. He pitched another good 3 1/3 innings against the Minnesota Twins, only giving up a run. Asked after the game what’s next for Peterson, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza emphatically replied, saying he would start in his next appearance.
Why? Why would the Mets do that? The old saying goes: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” And in this case, the Mets didn’t seem to listen to the saying. Surely enough, Peterson was put back into the rotation to face the Washington Nationals on April 29. He would go on to struggle mightily again, giving up seven runs on five hits in only 3 2/3 innings, his worst outing of the season.
“Very high,” Peterson said after the game on his confidence to start turning in good starts. “Because I’ve done it before and I believe in myself and I know I have the stuff to do it.”
Pitching Stats Don’t Lie, But They Don’t Tell the Whole Story
Peterson would later learn that he would be inserted back into the bullpen that same night. The 30-year-old made his third appearance out of the ‘pen on Monday in Colorado and threw four solid innings in relief, giving up two earned runs along the way. Those two runs should come with an asterisk, though.
In the bottom of the seventh, with two outs in the inning, Peterson got Rockies outfielder Jordan Beck to line a ball out to center field. Rookie Carson Benge, who was playing center at the time for the Mets, looked to have a bead on the ball. Instead, Benge tripped over his feet and stumbled to the ground, allowing Willi Castro — who was on first — to score. Beck ended up at third. The next batter, Kyle Karros, lined a fastball up the middle to cut the Mets’ lead to 4-2.
Peterson retired the next hitter, but those three at-bats took a toll on his pitch count. Before Beck’s at-bat, Peterson threw 48 pitches. After? 69. Had Benge made the play, Peterson could have possibly finished the game. Either way, it was another good sign for Peterson and the Mets. But the sign that’s most important is where Peterson’s next appearances for the foreseeable future should come from.
David Peterson throws four innings as the bulk man out of the Mets’ bullpen today pic.twitter.com/eha7IuSCqf
— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) May 4, 2026
“That’s how I expect myself to pitch and that’s how I expect myself to attack hitters,” Peterson said. “That’s why it’s disappointing when it has gone the other way a couple times this year.”
The Mets are 13-22. They are not in a rebuild. They cannot afford to make the same mistake again — putting Peterson back into the rotation. The Mets do not have the luxury of making mistakes. As the longest tenured Met, Peterson needs to understand that pitching out of the bullpen is what’s best for the team right now. It remains unclear what New York’s ultimate David Peterson decision will be going forward.
Main Photo Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
