Fan Favorite $3 Million Infielder Betrays Mets, Signs With NL West Contender
Padres Sign Jose Iglesias to $3M Minor League Deal After …
Both the New York Mets and New York Yankees need infielders. The Mets lost newly acquired shortstop Nick Madrigal on Feb. 23 when he fractured his shoulder in a spring game against the Washington Nationals and was subsequently relegated to the 60-day injured list.
As for the Yankees, their infield looks like a mess after the loss of second baseman Gleyber Torres in free agency, followed by a rash of injuries in spring training that has now claimed third baseman D.J. LeMahieu with a sore calf.
Both teams, however, have had every opportunity to sign an experienced, free agent middle infielder whose offensive numbers, while not spectacular, have exceeded LeMahieu’s over the last five seasons. But the Yankees passed on 35-year-old, 12-year veteran Jose Iglesias.
The Mets also failed to sign Iglesias, despite the fact that fans would have likely been thrilled to reunite with the infielder who not only compiled an impressive .830 OPS in 85 games for the team in 2024 – he also scored a No. 1 hit single on Billboard Magazine’s Latin chart with his song “OMG,” which quickly became the Mets’ unofficial theme song as they made their improbable run to the National League Championship Series.
But Iglesias will not be returning to New York, either for more “OMG” magic in Queens or as an infield savior for the battered Bronx Bombers. Instead, according to a report by Jack Magruder of MLB.com, the Cuban-born middle infielder has inked a minor league deal with the San Diego Padres, the team that finished second to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West in three of the last five seasons.
Under the deal, Iglesias will take part in the Padres’ spring training with the big league club, and if he is promoted to major league roster, his salary for the season will be $3 million.
Incentive clauses could add another $1 million to Iglesias’s 2025 paycheck, per a report by MLB insider journalist Jon Heyman.
Iglesias had earlier expressed hope that he could reunite with the Mets, telling the team’s cable television network SNY, “It’s not over until I sign with someone else.”
He has now signed with someone else, and the Mets and Yankees are both still searching for infield solutions.
