The New York Mets require some relief in the bullpen. Edwin Diaz is scheduled to be the team’s closer. Reed Garrett is scheduled to be the team’s setup man, but they might use some extra aid in the pen. The Mets saw six pitchers go at least 30 innings without a start. Three of those pitchers had ERAs greater than 4.00, with only one under the age of 30.
However, the Mets should be cautious about who they bring in. They don’t want to be involved in another Jeryus Familia problem, and they should be cautious with their money after signing the largest contract in professional sports history with Juan Soto. There are absolutely some relievers they should pursue and others they should avoid, and that is what we’ll be discussing today.
the Mets should sign Hoby Milner.
The Mets currently have only one left-handed reliever on their depth chart: Danny Young. However, the Milwaukee Brewers declined to tender a lefty bullpen arm with a high chance of rebounding in 2025. Hoby Milner’s ERA jumped from 1.82 in 2023 to 4.73 the following year. However, this is the only alteration that has occurred over the last two years.
Milner struck out 23.4% of his opponents and walked 5.2% in 2023. In 2024, the lefty had a 23.9% K% and the same 5.2% BB%. His HR/9 increased from 0.70 to 0.84. His underlying ERA estimators basically improved. Milner had 3.13 FIP, 3.43 SIERA, and 3.66 xFIP in 2023. Meanwhile, in 2024, he saw those numbers rise to 3.14 FIP, 3.08 SIERA, and 3.15 xFIP.
Milner has always been excellent at preventing hard contact and inducing ground balls, which has not changed in his last two seasons. Throughout the 2023 season, he kept opponents to an 86.6 MPH exit velocity, a 6.2% barrel rate, and a 50.9% ground ball percentage. Last year, he recorded an exit velocity of 87.7 MPH, a barrel rate of 2.7%, and a GB percentage of 51.9%.
Milner is older, as he will run in 2025 at the age of 34. However, he does not rely on overpowering substances to achieve positive results. Milner has regularly averaged 88-89 MPH over the last three seasons. His arm angle was negative, measuring -3 degrees. Given Milner’s lack of change over the last two years, despite an ERA increase of over three full runs, he’s a good bet for a strong 2025.
About The Author
