Mets new arm Ryan Helsley outshines Yankees additions instantly

Both the New York Mets and the New York Yankees operated aggressively in an effort to bolster their bullpens at the trade deadline. The Mets acquired Gregory Soto, Tyler Rogers and Ryan Helsley while the Yankees landed David Bednar, Jake Bird and Camilo Doval. Both teams needed bullpen help desperately, and when the trade deadline was officially over, it appeared as if both David Stearns and Brian Cashman had done an even better job than expected when it came to adding bullpen. Well, after Friday, the Mets might've outshone the Yankees at the deadline after Helsley was dominant and the Yankees' relievers were anything but.

In addition to debuting his electric introduction in front of a sold-out Citi Field crowd, Helsley introduced Mets fans to his absurd stuff. He did allow a pair of singles, but he averaged 100.5 mph with his fastball, generated seven whiffs on 11 swings (five of which came on seven swings against his unhittable slider), and struck out three batters in a scoreless ninth inning. Helsley gave the Mets a prime opportunity to win a game they absolutely should have won, and looked great doing so.

As for the Yankees relievers, none of them looked good. Jake Bird allowed a grand slam, turning what was a relatively comfortable 9-4 Yankees lead into a one-run game. He did so while recording only one out. New York hoped that David Bednar would put an end to that seventh inning, but he allowed four straight two-out hits including a game-tying home run to the second batter he faced, and a go-ahead single by former Yankees farmhand Agustin Ramirez.

As if that wasn't bad enough, armed with a two-run lead in the ninth inning, the Yankees hoped Camilo Doval would nail down the save. Instead, Doval allowed four of the five batters he faced to reach base, and surrendered a walk-off to Ramirez. His defense betrayed him, but still - he looked anything but sharp.

There's time for the script to flip, but it's easy to see why the Mets might've gotten the better end of the deadline deals.

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Difference in deadline philosophy might lead to better Mets results than Yankees in 2025

While both prioritized adding bullpen help, Stearns and Cashman operated differently when it came to pursuing the bullpen fortifications. All three relievers Stearns acquired are on expiring contracts, meaning the Mets might only have them for a couple of months. All three relievers Cashman acquired came with at least one additional year of club control, meaning they'll help the Yankees beyond the 2025 campaign.

It made sense for the Yankees to go after controllable options, especially given the fact that both Devin Williams and Luke Weaver are on expiring contracts of their own, but by doing so, they passed on the likes of Helsley and Rogers, who might've been better options to pursue with winning this season in mind.

Helsley has had a bit of a down year overall by his standards, but was the NL Reliever of the Year in 2024, and is as dominant as they come when he's on, as we saw on Friday night. Rogers isn't as big of a name as the likes of Bednar and Doval because he didn't save many games with the San Francisco Giants, but he's been MLB's biggest bullpen workhorse for a half decade now, and he's been as reliable as they come in the process.

Sure, there's the chance that both of these relievers walk at the end of the year, but they make the Mets bullpen much better right now, and come with few question marks. The Yankees will have their relievers for longer, but ultimately, there's a reason they didn't have to part with nearly as much as the Philadelphia Phillies did to acquire Jhoan Duran or the San Diego Padres did to acquire Mason Miller.

Bednar, while dominant of late, had a miserable 2024 campaign and struggled to begin 2025 to the point where he was demoted to Triple-A. Doval struggled to the point where he was removed from the closer role in San Francisco last season and, while he reclaimed it in 2025, he's been a bit shaky. As for Bird, the stuff looks great at times, but he's a pitcher the Yankees need to develop a bit more before trusting fully in high-leverage.

I don't blame the Yankees for pursuing controllable relievers in their situation, but the Mets going all-in for the best rentals on the market gives them their best shot of winning it all in 2025.