When speaking during the MLB general manager meetings in Las Vegas in mid-November, Baltimore Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias was very clear about what he wanted to do with his bullpen heading into the 2026 season.
“We’re trying to make an external addition there, so working on that right now. I can’t say things with 100 percent certainty, but we’re making every effort to make external additions to the bullpen and, in particular, an experienced ninth-inning guy if we can,” Elias said, per a November 28 article from Roch Kubatko of MASN.
Read more: ‘Wild card’ Orioles in hot pursuit of top free agent hitter
The Orioles acquired one of the most experienced ninth-inning guys on November 29, when it was announced that Baltimore signed former St. Louis Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley to a two-year, $28 million deal. While this deal certainly accomplished Elias’ aim of getting a guy who has saved a lot of games in his MLB career (105, to be exact), there are a lot of question marks regarding where Helsley is at in his career right now.
Sep 12, 2025; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets relief pitcher Ryan Helsley (56) pitches against the Texas Rangers during the ninth inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Helsley (who won the 2024 NL Reliever of the Year Award with the St. Louis Cardinals) was traded from St. Louis to the New York Mets at the 2025 trade deadline. He went on to have a brutal tenure in New York, posting a 7.20 ERA in 20 innings pitched. While he wasn’t the Mets’ closer at the time (that was still Edwin Diaz’s job), his struggles cost him the high-leverage role and were one of many reasons why the Mets missed the playoffs.
However, there were some pitch-tipping issues that came to light, which likely contributed to his struggles. And the fact that he posted a 2.25 ERA in his final seven appearances with New York suggests he was righting the ship heading into free agency.
Zack Britton Sends Strong Message About Ryan Helsley Signing
One person who knows about how to succeed as a reliever in Baltimore is longtime Orioles closer Zack Britton, who spent the first seven seasons of his MLB career with the Orioles. During that time. Britton made 306 appearances with the team and posted a 3.22 ERA, 425 strikeouts, and tallied 139 saves during that span, according to StatMuse.
Britton clearly approves of this move by Baltimore, which he made clear with an X post on November 29 that read, “Really really like this move. If he is close to 2022-2025 St. Louis version, this is a great deal for the O’s.”
Really really like this move. If he is close to 2022-2025 St. Louis version, this is a great deal for the O’s. https://t.co/9xGWTlahQz
— Zack Britton (@zbritton) November 29, 2025
Britton is alluding to Helsley posting a 2.03 ERA, 266 strikeouts, and 103 saves in 188 appearances with the Cardinals over the past four seasons. This is surely the guy that Baltimore is hoping to have signed.
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