Orioles' Ryan Helsley might have already proven Mets' disaster was a fluke

The Baltimore Orioles, with Felix Bautista out with an injury, needed to go out and acquire a new closer this past offseason.

They did so by signing Ryan Helsley, the former St. Louis Cardinals All-Star, but New York Mets trade deadline disaster, to a one-year, $14 million deal with a 2027 player option.

While there might have been worries about Helsley on the Tigers after his 7.20 ERA stint with the Mets, as Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report notes, he shut down those worries in his Orioles debut on Opening Day with a shut-down performance.

Ryan Helsley puts Mets disaster behind him with Orioles

"Ryan Helsley, though. He's theoretically a reclamation project," Rymer writes, "but there was never anything wrong with his stuff last year. That showed as he locked down the save in the ninth inning, striking out the side with a max velo of 102 mph."

Helsley was a big signing for the Orioles, and there were legitimate concerns about his game coming off his Mets stint. While he's been a good closer in years past, including leading all of MLB in saves with 49 in 2024, it's hard to ignore his 2025 season.

Across 36 innings with the Cardinals before the trade, he had a perfectly fine 3.00 ERA. But, after being dealt to the Mets, they posted a 7.20 ERA in 22 outings with multiple blown saves.

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He was one of the worst trade deadline pickups by a wide margin, as, while not the sole reason, the Mets' second-half collapse wasn't helped by Helsley's struggles.

But, even though it's only been one outing for the Orioles, the stuff that he showed against the Minnesota Twins was good enough to dissuade a lot of the concerns about Helsley from last season.

A three-strikeout save, with his fastball reaching 102 miles per hour, is a fantastic way to begin the season. Helsley was a nice signing this offseason for the Orioles, and if he can continue this momentum, it will look even better by season's end.

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