A reason to trust the 5 main NY Mets relievers in the bullpen right now

Last season made it clear that trusting the bullpen was a risky proposition, and the offseason didn’t do much to change that when the New York Mets watched their most reliable late-inning arm sign with another team. That’s the backdrop, whether anyone likes it or not. Confidence isn’t automatic here, and it shouldn’t be. Still, this group isn’t short on data points. A handful of relievers already have numbers that can give fans a reason to trust them heading into the season.

Why each Mets bullpen arm earns some trust

Luke Weaver

His 2025 season went in two directions. Before his June 1 injury, he dominated, posting a 1.05 ERA with a 26% strikeout rate over 25.2 innings. After returning, he posted a 5.31 ERA over 39 innings, but a 3.19 xERA suggests the results were harsher than his performance warranted.

Where Weaver will earn the fans' trust is in the situations that decide games. In high-leverage spots, hitters managed just a .200 BAA with an 82 OPS+. Late and close situations were even better, with opponents hitting .193 and posting an 80 OPS+. That’s the type of reliability Mets fans will appreciate when the game hangs in the balance.

Devin Williams

You don’t need to dig very far to know 2025 wasn’t Devin Williams’ best work. His 4.79 ERA was easily the worst mark of his career, a sharp contrast from the stretch where he sat comfortably among the game’s elite relievers.

What still shows up, and why trust remains, is how often Williams makes hitters miss. His chase, whiff, and strikeout rates all ranked in the top three percent of MLB. The changeup remained a weapon, holding hitters to a .194 average and .341 slugging, while his fastball held hitters to a .202 average with a .293 slugging percentage. For Mets fans, it matters that many of the traits that made Williams great never actually left.

AJ Minter

Minter arrived with a track record after several steady seasons in Atlanta, but his first year in New York never really got off the ground. After just 13 appearances, an injury shut things down early, leaving Mets fans with more questions than answers and very little to evaluate on the surface.

Despite being a lefty, his reverse splits are where Mets fans can trust Minter. Even though they didn’t have long to see it in action, he consistently kept right-handed hitters in check with the Braves. In 2022, righties hit .222 against him with a 71 OPS+ while striking out 32 percent of the time. That was followed by a .210 average and 56 OPS+ in 2023, then a .184 average and 73 OPS+ in 2024. That profile gives Carlos Mendoza a reliable weapon to deploy when matchups lean heavily toward right-handed hitters.

Brooks Raley

After a solid 2023 with the Mets, Brooks Raley barely had a chance to build on it before Tommy John surgery cut his 2024 short after eight appearances and wiped out most of 2025. Even coming off the injury, he still managed to put together a strong season, posting a 2.45 ERA while allowing just 14 hits and six walks, striking out 25 over 25.2 innings.

What makes Raley easy to trust is how well he’s handled leverage. Mets fans saw it this past season, and it showed up again in 2023. In high-leverage spots in 2023, hitters managed just a .179 average with a 52 OPS+. In 2025, he held opponents to a .182 average and a 35 OPS+, reinforcing his ability to shut innings down when the pressure is on and the games are on the line.

Huascar Brazoban

Brazobán’s 2025 results relied heavily on how he was used, making deployment the key to trusting him. When runners reached scoring position, he delivered, holding hitters to a .197 average with a 61 OPS+. With two outs in those same spots, he tightened further, limiting opponents to a .152 average and a 44 OPS+. He has flaws, but used correctly, he’s an arm Mets fans can trust to get out of jams and to end innings.