Craig Albernaz gets honest about Orioles' Ryan Helsley signing

New Baltimore Orioles manager Craig Albernaz spoke on his roster's two newest additions.

Nov 4, 2025; Baltimore, MD, USA; Left: Craig Albernaz looks at Right: President of Baseball Operations Mike Elias after being introduced as the Baltimore Orioles new Manager at Warehouse Bar. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

The Baltimore Orioles made arguably the biggest splash in MLB's free agent reliever market on November 29, when they signed Ryan Helsley to a two-year, $28 million deal that includes a player option after the 2026 season.

The expectation is that Helsley will be Baltimore's closer for the 2026 season, or at least until Felix Bautista is healthy enough to return after undergoing right shoulder surgery. However, given that Bautista won't be able to return until the late summer at the earliest and could very well miss the entire season, it seems likely that Helsley will be the Orioles' 9th-inning man for the 2026 campaign, so long as he doesn't lose that job.

Read more: Orioles emerge as 'serious threat' to sign top starting pitcher

It would have been hard to imagine Helsley losing a closer job just a few months ago, when he was still with the St. Louis Cardinals. After all, Helsley was coming off a stellar campaign that earned him the 2024 NL Reliever of the Year Award and was pitching well for the struggling Cardinals in 2025.

Then he was traded to the New York Mets at the deadline and struggled immensely. Helsley was ultimately removed from his high-leverage, late-inning role (he was never the Mets' closer because of Edwin Diaz) before the season ended.

Sep 1, 2025; Detroit, Michigan, USA; New York Mets pitcher Ryan Helsley (56) throws a pitch against the Detroit Tigers in the seventh inning at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

Helsley finished his Mets tenure with an ugly 7.20 ERA in 20 appearances, and that came after he pitched much better in the final months than he had before that. Therefore, while Helsley appears poised for a bounce-back 2026 campaign with the Orioles, fans would be fair to have some concerns about their new closer.

Craig Albernaz Addresses Having Ryan Helsley, Taylor Ward on Orioles Roster

New Orioles manager doesn't have much concern about Helsley (or slugger Taylor Ward, whom the Orioles traded for in exchange for Grayson Rodriguez in November), which was conveyed with comments he made about both that were included in a December 5 article from MASN's Roch Kubatko.

“Real excited. Mike [Elias] and his group, they’re working to getting the team better and making these additions. When you add a right-handed bat and a presence in the lineup like Taylor Ward, how can you not be excited? And the same thing with Ryan Helsley," Albernaz was quoted as saying.

"And the cool part with Helz is that, he was a high-priority free agent for a lot of teams and he made the decision to choose us, and that’s something we don’t take lightly here. And I thanked him for it," he added.

Albernaz talks about new additions to roster, Miller recalls Helsley's "incredible rocket for an arm" https://t.co/O7sskLdInZ #orioles

— Roch Kubatko (@masnRoch) December 5, 2025

Orioles fans must be feeling good about how this offseason has started. And all indications are that Mike Elias still isn't done making moves.

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