The Mets did not extend the $19.65 million qualifying offer to Taijuan Walker, making him a free agent.
Meanwhile, the Mets have extended the QO to fellow starters Jacob deGrom and Chris Bassitt and center fielder Brandon Nimmo.
Walker, 30, opted out of his contract on Nov. 7, as his player option for the 2023 season was only $6 million, and received a $3 million buyout. He signed a three-year, $23 million deal with the Mets in 2021 after pitching for the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays in 2020.
The righty earned an All-Star nomination in his first season in New York after a strong first half of the season, but struggled after the break and ended the year with a 7-11 record, 4.47 ERA, 1.182 WHIP, and 146 strikeouts over 159.0 innings.
Walker then went 12-5 with a 3.49 ERA, 1.195 WHIP, and 132 strikeouts over 157.1 innings for the Mets during their 101-win season this past year.
Over 10 years in the big leagues with four clubs, Walker owns a career record of 54-50 with a 3.89 ERA, 1.226 WHIP and has recorded 806 strikeouts in 898.0 innings.
Extending the qualifying offer to deGrom, Bassitt, and Nimmo, on the other hand, was very much expected.
As a reminder, once a team extends the qualifying offer to a player, that player can either accept the one-year, $19.65 million deal, or reject it. If a player rejects it and signs with a different team, his new team would owe the Mets draft pick compensation.