Three of the top relief pitchers on the free agent market this offseason have signed three-year deals, as Edwin Díaz has departed to sign with the Dodgers, former Padres closer Robert Suarez has signed with the Braves, and Devin Williams has signed with the Mets. We’ve already taken a quick look at the current state of the Mets’ bullpen with Williams in it, and with two of the best relievers who were still on the market at the time of that signing now gone, let’s look at the top tier of remaining
free agent relievers.
As has been the case here at Amazin’ Avenue in years past, we’ll run through the ranks of free agent relievers by their fWAR as relievers this year. It’s not a perfect metric, but it’s certainly a useful one for these purposes. So without further ado, here are the top ten relievers available in free agency at the time of this writing by 2025 fWAR.
Tyler Rogers (1.3 fWAR): Having spent the post-trade-deadline portion of the 2025 season with the Mets, Rogers is a familiar name—and one that the Mets are interested in. The 34-year-old side-arming right-handed pitcher finished the season with a 1.98 and a 2.88 FIP in 77.1 innings of work, continuing to master the craft of getting hitters out despite sporting one of the lowest strikeout rates among major league relievers. And while his ERA this year was the best single-season mark of his career, his track record is very good. Rogers has a 2.76 ERA since he began his major league career in 2019.
Shawn Armstrong (1.3 fWAR): The 35-year-old righty had a fantastic season for the Texas Rangers this year, finishing with a 2.31 ERA and a 3.07 FIP in 74.0 innings of work. He served as an opener twice, which leaves him with 70.0 of those innings officially out of the bullpen, and he fared better when he wasn’t opening. He pitched for the then-Indians, Mariners, Orioles, Rays, Marlins, Rays again, Cardinals, and Cubs before signing a one-year deal with the Rangers.
Brad Keller (1.2 fWAR): After a very good rookie season in 2018 as a starter with the Royals, the right-handed now-30-year-old Keller put up a cumulative 4.27 ERA in his six years as Kansas City. And while he got some work out of the bullpen in that time, he really converted to being a reliever in 2024, spending time with the White Sox and Red Sox. But he finished that season with a 5.84 ERA and a 5.68 FIP in 41.1 innings, and home runs were his weakness, as he gave up 1.96 per nine innings. Signed to a one-year deal by the Cubs last offseason, though, he really got things together this year, cutting his home run rate to 0.52 per nine and finishing the season with a 2.10 ERA and a 2.99 FIP out of the Cubs’ bullpen.
Caleb Thielbar (1.1 fWAR): Like Keller, Thielbar signed a one-year deal with the Cubs last offseason, and he had a very good 2025 campaign. In 58.0 innings, the 38-year-old lefty had a 2.64 ERA and a 3.00 FIP. It was a bounce back season for him, as the 2024 season—the last of his eight seasons with the Twins—saw him put up a 5.32 ERA. His track record before then was much better than that, though.
Sean Newcomb (1.1 fWAR): The longtime Brave and University of Hartford alumnus has primarily been a reliever since the 2021 season, his last full season with Atlanta. The lefty was traded to the Cubs during the 2022 season, and he spent the 2023 and 2024 seasons with the A’s before signing with the Red Sox this year. In late May, the A’s picked him back up from Boston, and in total, he had a 2.19 ERA and a 3.08 FIP in the 70.0 innings he threw as a reliever. He fared far worse in the five starts he made, as he had a 4.43 ERA in them, but having the ability to make some spot starts is still potentially useful.
Justin Wilson (1.0 fWAR): Another lefty, the 38-year-old Wilson is also another familiar name here, as he spent the 2019 and 2020 seasons with the Mets. He’s pitched for the Yankees, Reds, and Red Sox since then, and with Boston this year, he had a 3.35 ERA and a 2.95 FIP in 48.1 innings. With Brooks Raley and A.J. Minter in their bullpen already, the Mets don’t necessarily need a lefty right now, as both of the incumbent lefties have shown the ability to be effective against left- and right-handed hitters.
Tyler Alexander (1.0 fWAR): Here’s the first pitcher on this list who might not quite fit into the tier that fWAR suggests, but thanks to a 3.58 FIP in 80.1 innings of relief work, he’s here. His 4.93 ERA in those innings is more concerning, and the 31-year-old lefty hasn’t posted a sub-4.00 ERA since 2021.
Pete Fairbanks (1.0 fWAR): Having made all but the first eight of his major league appearances for the Rays, Fairbanks surprisingly saw his team option for the 2026 season declined by Tampa Bay. While his strikeout rate ain’t what it used to be—24.0 percent across the 2024 and 2025 seasons compared to the 33.9 percent from 2019 through 2023—he managed to finish this season with a 2.83 ERA and a 3.63 FIP in 60.1 innings. The soon-to-be 32-year-old righty is still averaging 97 miles per hour with his fastball, down slightly from a 99-mph-average peak but still very much in line with his career norms before and after that peak.
