Mets deadline acquisition may pitch himself off a playoff roster

Ryan Helsley had another rough outing for the Mets in Detroit, raising questions about whether he would even make a potential postseason roster.

Aug 22, 2025; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; New York Mets pitcher Ryan Helsley (56) pitches the ball against the Atlanta Braves during the ninth inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images | Jordan Godfree-Imagn Images

The New York Mets tried to build a super bullpen at the trade deadline, but the unit's construction has one major flaw. Ryan Helsley, who the Mets added to be the primary bridge to Edwin Diaz, has struggled mightily since coming to New York and had another rough performance in Detroit on Wednesday afternoon.

that ball got Kerryd away pic.twitter.com/UPHIlra7TD

— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) September 3, 2025

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza went to Helsley down 3-2 in the seventh inning, and he proceeded to give up three runs on three hits with a walk. The back-breaking blow was a three-run homer from Kerry Carpenter that put the game out of reach, costing the Mets a chance at sweeping the American League's best team.

Ryan Helsley has allowed 14 ER in 11 IP as a Met (11.45 ERA)

He allowed 12 ER in 36 IP as a Cardinal (3.00 ERA) pic.twitter.com/DUFcPuFhR0

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) September 3, 2025

The poor outing raised Helsley's ERA as a Met to 11.45 in just 11 innings pitched. The 31-year-old has surrendered 14 earned runs since joining the Mets, which is more than he gave up all in nearly four months as the St. Louis Cardinals' closer, when he gave up 12 in 36 innings pitched.

The Mets have believed that Helsley is tipping pitches, which has allowed opponents to sit on his fastball and tee off on it. While the team and Helsley have been working on ways to counter that problem, it has not been fixed quite yet and his struggles have been a major issue for the Mets' bullpen construction.

Read More: Mets star reliever pinpoints source of struggles

Ryan Helsley Could Pitch Himself Off Of A Mets' Postseason Roster

With just a few weeks left in the regular season, the Mets are in a good position to make the postseason, entering the day with playoff odds above 96%. A good series in Cincinnati over the weekend would all but lock up a playoff berth for New York, leaving the team time to make key decisions about who to carry on their postseason rosters.

Mendoza has been very supportive of his players and has given struggling veterans plenty of opportunities to turn their seasons around, but the team's mentality has started to change on that front. Kodai Senga's rotation spot is in jeopardy, and it is fair to wonder if Helsley has entered the territory of being a guy who doesn't make the Mets' pitching staff in a Wild Card series.

While Helsley has tremendous stuff that is good as anyone on the staff, it hasn't translated into outs, forcing the Mets to try various other relievers in the later innings. Mendoza will likely give Helsley opportunities to correct his issues before the end of the regular season, but a pitcher with an ERA of nearly 12 in the past month is hard to trust in do-or-die situations.

The Mets have a few locks for the postseason roster in both the rotation (David Peterson, Nolan McLean, Clay Holmes) and bullpen (Edwin Diaz, Gregory Soto, Brooks Raley, Tyler Rogers, Reed Garrett). The team will likely carry Sean Manaea in some capacity due to his previous experience in relief while Jonah Tong may pitch his way onto the postseason roster with a strong finish to the season, leaving just three spots left to fill in the bullpen.

The most logical options for those spots would be some combination of Ryne Stanek, Helsley, Tylor Megill and Huascar Brazoban, with Brandon Sproat likely to get a look at some point late in the season. Megill offers some length if a starter goes short, which makes him a candidate to get a slot as a multi-inning reliever alongside Manaea.

Helsley is basically on the fringe of the projected playoff roster now and could get lapped by Stanek, who has pitched better than him of late, and Sproat if his stuff plays in a big league audition. The best case scenario for Helsley right now is to be carried as the 13th pitcher who is rarely used, which is not what the Mets were hoping for when they acquired him.

There is still time for Helsley to figure things out, but each disappointing outing raises the possibility he isn't a factor for the Mets in October. While none of the prospects the Mets moved for Helsley should come back to bite them in the long run, he has easily been the team's most disappointing deadline pickup.