The Mets’ overworked bullpen is in need of…well, relief.
As the trade deadline looms eight days away, David Stearns isn’t hiding the Mets’ primary priority: bolstering the bullpen. We will have a companion piece on the left-handed side later today, but right now we are looking at right-handed relievers the Mets could target at the deadline. Since June 13, the Mets have tallied the most innings thrown by right-handed relievers (111.0) of any team in MLB, while totaling the fourth-lowest fWAR (-0.3) from right-handed relievers in that same span. It’s not a winning combination, and it’s no surprise the Mets have won just 12 of 32 games since then.
Two of the higher-end right-handed relievers in the game this season belong to the Pittsburgh Pirates, who hold the third-worst record in baseball. Their closer, David Bednar, boasts a 2.38 ERA with 46 strikeouts in 34.0 IP, getting snubbed this season from a third All-Star selection in four years. Their setup man, Dennis Santana, holds a 1.49 ERA which ranks second-best among N.L. pitchers with at least 40.0 IP. Santana, a Met for 10.2 IP back in 2023, has elite peripherals, including an N.L.-best .143 SLG against his slider and a 99th-percentile chase rate. Both Santana and Bednar should command a steep price compared to other available relievers, especially given they’re both under team control through the 2026 season.
Past Bednar and Santana, there are an array of veteran arms who could command a high price in the bullpen market this deadline. The most intriguing are San Francisco Giants reliever Tyler Rogers and the Tampa Bay Rays’ Pete Fairbanks, who are less likely to be dealt than other relievers but both having standout contract years. Since 2021, no one has pitched in more games (342) than Rogers, whose signature submarine delivery has yielded an exceptional 1.54 ERA this season. Fairbanks, a regular throughout the Rays’ recent postseason runs, is having a classic Fairbanksian year, posting a 2.92 ERA behind a 98th-percentile Barrel%. Both the Giants and Rays are currently within reach of a playoff spot, which should dampen their desire to deal away valuable pieces. The Giants’ slide down the standings over the past month and a half has played out similar to the Mets’ skid, as the Giants have gone 11-20 since June 13 and now sit 3.5 games out of a playoff spot; still, if they trust their success over the first two months of the season, they’ll almost certainly elect to keep Rogers. But the Rays, who are just 1.5 games out of a playoff spot, won’t necessarily follow the same logic, as their organization tends to prioritize long-term value above all else.
If the Baltimore Orioles throw in the towel on a disappointing 2025 season, they would have a pair of more affordable relievers to deal. While not faring as well as in his previous two seasons, Andrew Kittredge has ridden his plus slider to a 3.86 ERA, while ex-Philly Seranthony Domínguez has an 11.9 K/9 rate which would rank second on the Mets’ staff. Kittredge has a team option for 2026, while Dominguez is set to hit free agency for the first time this offseason. The Reds also have a pair of potential trade candidates in Emilio Pagán and Scott Barlow, who collectively held the Mets scoreless for 2.0 IP this past weekend. The 34-year-old Pagán has a 2.83 ERA with 51 strikeouts in 41.1 IP, while the 32-year-old Barlow has a 3.65 ERA with 49 strikeouts in 44.1 IP. Both pitchers are in contract years, and despite their team’s recent series win in Flushing, the Reds remain 3.5 games back of a playoff spot. Fellow Ohio reliever Jakob Junis, who currently holds a 3.51 ERA on a one-year deal with the Cleveland Guardians, is another potential trade target. After serving as a starter and long reliever throughout his career, Junis was converted to a full-time reliever this season, and has allowed just one run in his last 12.2 innings of work.
The pitchers with the third- and fifth-most saves in MLB since 2022 are also in contract years with teams sitting just outside the postseason picture. Kenley Jansen has recorded 464 career saves, good for fourth all-time, and 17 of those have come while on a one-year contract with the Angels this season. The 37-year-old continues to defy the aging curve, only once posting an ERA+ below 120 during his sixteen-year career. Meanwhile, Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley currently holds a 3.18 ERA with 37 strikeouts in 34.0 IP. Helsley has taken a small step back following a 49-save 2024 campaign, seeing his Hard-Hit rate rise while his Whiff rate drops. Jansen and Helsley could be available via trade this July if the Angels and Cardinals — 3.5 and 4.0 games back from a playoff spot, respectively — decide to sell and regroup for 2026.
Finally, there are a pair of former Mets with whom it might make sense for the organization to reunite. Former starting pitching prospect Rafael Montero has had a long and winding road since leaving the Mets following the 2018 season. Montero found sporadic success as a reliever with both Texas and Houston, with his best season coming as a member of the Astros’ 2022 World Series team. Since being traded to Atlanta in April, Montero has a 3.94 ERA, making him an attractive and affordable option as the Braves sit 10.5 games out of a playoff spot. Meanwhile, after his fine second-half stint with the Mets in 2024, Phil Maton is currently having a career year with the Cardinals. At 32 years old, Maton has a 2.48 ERA with an 11.6 K/9 rate, flashing a 100th-percentile average exit velocity. Of all the available right-handed relief options, Maton — a player in a contract year, on a middling team, and whom David Stearns has sought before — is perhaps the most intuitive fit for the 2025 Mets.