The New York Mets picked up reliever Ryan Helsley as some backup when bullpen ace Edwin Diaz might not be available. Helsley, who came over to the Mets after six-plus seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals, wanted to get off to a good start.
Well, that’s not happened. Helsley has blown two leads and a save opportunity in his last four appearances out of the Mets’ bullpen. It’s been enough of an issue to stress out even the heartiest of Mets’ fans.
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza, though, believes that Helsley will show signs of improvement.
What Must Ryan Helsley Do To Improve for Mets?
Mendoza appeared on “Foul Territory” and discussed Helsley, emphasizing that he does fill a need for the club right now.
“With Hels, we were very transparent, and you have got to give the guy credit,” Mendoza said. “He was willing to do whatever it takes as soon as he got here. ‘Hey, if you need me to pitch the seventh, pitch the eighth, pitch the ninth, I’m good for whatever. I want to win.’
“Right away, we’re like, ‘Hey man, there’s going to be days where Edwin is down, you’re going to get the last three outs,’” Mendoza said. “‘There’s days where you’re going to be pitching in the eighth, you’re going to be pitching in the seventh. The one thing we’ll try and do our best is once we get you hot, most likely you’re going to come into the game.’”
Mendoza said that the Mets’ pitching staff has been letting Helsley and the other Mets’ closers know that when they get up in the bullpen, they are coming into the game. Mendoza added that they let Helsley know what they are thinking about situationally before he goes in to pitch.
The Mets’ manager also said that they are letting him know that maybe he’ll come into the game either in the seventh, eighth, or ninth innings.
“I feel like he’s adjusted well,” Mendoza said. “We haven’t had the performance that he would want, we haven’t had the performance that we would want. But it was good to see that inning last night where he was able to execute, especially the secondary pitches.”
How Had Helsley Been Performing For Mets?
In the 2025 MLB Little League Classic on Sunday, Aug. 17, Helsley threw one inning of relief against the Seattle Mariners. He didn’t allow a run while striking out two and walking just one.
“I feel like that slider has been getting hit because he’s staying middle-middle, especially when he’s ahead,” Mendoza said. “He’s got too good of a stuff. We’re not worried about him because, again, he’s elite and he’s going to continue to get big outs for us.”
For the season, Helsley is 3-4 with 21 saves, a 3.61 ERA, and a WHIP of 1.488. Should Helsley be able to follow Sunday’s appearance up with another stellar outing, the Mets will be pleased.
Entering Monday’s action, the Mets are five games behind the first-place Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East Division. In their past 10 games, New York has gone 3-7, but it has won two straight games. Helsley will need to continue performing well for the Mets to have a chance at getting into the NL East lead.