Just after it was announced that reliever Jhoan Duran is headed to Philadelphia, Jon Heyman of New York Post Sports reported that the New York Mets were finalizing a deal to acquire right-handed reliever, Ryan Helsley, from the St. Louis Cardinals. It was later confirmed that the package the Mets are sending St. Louis consist of three prospects; infielder Jesus Baez and right-handed pitchers Nate Dohm and Frank Elissalt. Baez, Dohm, and Elissalt were MMO’s seventh, 17th, and 38th-ranked prospects, respectively.

Helsley has been with the Cardinals since they drafted him in 2015 and made his major-league debut six years ago in 2019. Over the course of his career, he has a 2.67 ERA, has recorded 105 saves, and totaled 355 strikeouts across 299 2/3 innings. In 2025, specifically, he has a 3.00 ERA, 21 saves, and 41 strikeouts through 36 innings.

He is a two-time National League All-Star (2022 and 2024), was named to the All-MLB First Team in 2024 while also being named the Trevor Hoffman National League Reliever of the Year.

Helsley is a known for his impressive fastball velocity. This season the fastball has averaged at 99.3 mph, however, it has gotten hit around a lot this season (.406 BA, .332 xBA). The career-long closer’s best pitch is by far his slider, which he throws nearly 48% of the time. It has a BA of .092 and a xBA of .124. These pitches help Helsley generate a ton of chases (94th percentile) and swing-and-misses (86th percentile).

Notably, the 31-year-old is due to be a free agent at season’s end.

Ryan Helsley. Photo Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images

Meanwhile, the right-handed infielder, Baez, is slashing .242/.332/.390, with a .722 OPS in 2025. He has hit 10 home runs and driven in 42 runs. Baez looked to be on the ascent through the Mets’ organizational prospect rankings, as he had a .993 OPS in May with High-A Brooklyn. However, in June, that OPS decreased to .702, and in July, entering Wednesday, he had a .634 OPS. At only 20 years old, there is still a ton of time for the former top-100 prospect, by some outlets, to develop and improve.

Right-handed pitcher Nate Dohm has split the 2025 season between Single-A St. Lucie (seven games) and High-A Brooklyn (11 games, 10 starts). Between the two, he is 3-5 with a 2.87 ERA with 77 strikeouts and a 1.26 WHIP over the course of 62 2/3 innings. His underlying metrics (3.25 FIP, 3.15 xFIP) further paints an encouraging picture. The 22-year-old third-round pick was an intriguing arm, something the Mets have a plethora of in their system.

Frank Elissalt, thus far this season, also split time between St. Lucie (18 games) and Brooklyn (two games). He is 4-5, with a 3.04 ERA between the two and has 65 strikeouts and a 0.99 WHIP over the course of 56 1/3 inning. He was an unranked prospect within the Mets system by several outlets.

With adding Helsley, the Mets’ bullpen now features a fierce three-headed monster of Tyler Rogers, Helsley, and Edwin Díaz.