NY Mets depth chart in the bullpen has clearly defined who’s at the bottom for now

With the first game of the 2025 baseball season officially in the rearview mirror, the New York Mets are marching forward as they identify how to deploy their 26-man roster in different facets of the game. Much like last year, the starting rotation patchwork will be a series of trials and tribulations, figuring out how to maximize potential and vision into tangible results. The starting lineup will be potent, highly dependent on how frequent and consistent the top sluggers are in putting runs on the scoreboard.

But, what about the Mets’ collection of relievers? While usage will be fluid depending on what the day’s game dictates, manager Carlos Mendoza has a plethora of arms that he has seen and worked with before.

While some things change with the 2025 Mets, one key area may have stayed the same, giving us an idea of how certain relievers will be deployed even before seeing most of them in action this year.

Familiar faces in similar places

After serving vital roles in 2024, a large contingent of the Mets’ bullpen is now a mainstay on the current roster. The likes of Reed Garrett, Ryne Stanek, and even Jose Butto will, in some shape or form, serve as a bridge to closer Edwin Diaz toward the end of nail-biting contests. Whether it’s getting key outs in high-leverage situations or going through the teeth of opposing teams’ lineups, that collection of arms will most likely be toeing the slab in the end game.

The addition of A.J. Minter provides a steady presence for Mendoza, sending the southpaw out to get the Freddie Freemans, Bryce Harpers, or any slugging left-handed batter capable of turning a game on its head.

On the outside, looking in

Reserved for the low-leverage and middling parts of the game, in all likelihood, those duties will rest on the shoulders of Danny Young, Huascar Brazoban, and Max Kranick. Spending much of Spring Training tinkering and retooling their pitching repertoires, the latter two guys were initially competing for the same spot before Paul Blackburn’s injury gave them both a ticket to the big-league roster. Based on what we saw in Wednesday’s Opening Day game against the Houston Astros, Brazoban will most likely be counted on to eat innings in contests where the Mets are trailing. The same holds for Kranick whenever Brazoban is unavailable, or perhaps when the game is more within reach.

Bullpens are notoriously fickle and ever-changing, dependent on an individual player’s flows of success and pitfalls. Any slip-up over a short stretch can knock a reliever down a peg or two, enlisting them to regain the trust of their skipper. What also flies under the radar is another staple in the 2024 Mets bullpen: Dedniel Nunez. Starting in the minor leagues this year as he progressively ramps up his workload from a pronator strain that took him out of action in the second half of last season, Nunez can easily assert his way back up to the big league roster if any reliever slip-up or injury arises.

And as much as the attention goes to the leadup of relievers to keep the Mets close or ahead late, a large amount of time and examination will also be on Edwin Diaz. Ultimately, the team’s ability to win close games will be reflective of whether Diaz can be the lockdown guy.