Actions ultimately speak louder than words, but if you want to feel even more optimistic about the Cubs' offseason following the signing of Phil Maton, then these rumored free agent targets should be encouraging. We have already seen the Cubs linked to free agent closers Pete Fairbanks and Devin Williams, while rehabbing reliever Evan Phillips also appears to be on the team's radar, and now you can add Ryan Helsley to the Cubs' wishlist.
In the midst of revisiting last year's trade for Kyle Tucker, The Athletic's Patrick Mooney dropped a bit of juicy free agent buzz on Tuesday as he officially connected Helsley to the Cubs.
Via The Athletic.
The Cubs are also among the teams showing interest in free agent Ryan Helsley, according to a league source. Helsley, a two-time All-Star reliever, notched 105 saves over his career with the St. Louis Cardinals, though he has also intrigued clubs as a starter.
Helsley was a stud with the St. Louis Cardinals and before he was traded to the New York Mets last summer he recorded 70 saves in 79 opportunities in 1.5 seasons with the Cubs' division rival. The hard-throwing reliever was first called up by St. Louis in 2019, worked in middle relief before he was trusted in high-leverage spots. Then, Helsley took off in 2022, when he had a 1.25 ERA with 94 strikeouts in 64.2 innings.
From 2022-25, Helsley posted a 2.49 ERA, saved 103 games and recorded a 31.9 K% in 223.2 innings.
Dominant stuff from Helsley, who is one of the hardest-throwing relievers in MLB. His 99.3mph fastball ranked fifth among all qualified relievers during the 2025 season and he also averaged 88.8mph on his slider. The Cubs finally had someone in the bullpen with firepower this past season with Daniel Palencia, but the more the merrier.
However, there's that whole Mets disaster that happened after the trade deadline. Helsley was having another strong season with the Cardinals before he was dealt at the trade deadline. In his last 22 appearances of the season Helsley had a 7.20 ERA in 20 innings as he also saw his strikeout rate decline and his walk rate inflate, while also getting crushed.
I mean, this wasn't Helsley running into bad luck with the Mets. Opposing batters had a slash line of .301/.379/.554, against Helsley, who had previously held hitters to a .199 batting average while he pitched for the Cardinals. However, it sounds like those struggles with the Mets were caused by the Mets.
Helsley was tipping his pitches and that happened after the Mets suggested an adjustment with his set up on the mound.
Via The Athletic.
Helsley’s tell came from his hand position as he was becoming set. Throughout his career, Helsley would come set with his hands high. The Mets suggested changing his positioning and keeping his hands closer to his chest. But making an in-season adjustment — especially in the big leagues — does not always come easy, especially when the results aren’t following.
So, that's certainly a valid explanation for his struggles and considering his long track of success I wouldn't be all too concerned about his stint with the Mets.
It won't be easy for the Cubs to sign Helsley because he's been one of the most popular free agent relievers on the market. Katie Woo reported that about half the league has expressed interest in the two-time All-Star and 2024 NL Reliever of the Year.
Plus, there are some teams that are reportedly interested in converting Helsley into a starting pitcher, which would increase his price for other potential suitors in free agency.
It's still relatively early in free agency and signings probably won't pick up until the Winter Meetings in December, but for the first time under Jed Hoyer's leadership the Cubs are seemingly targeting several high-end relief pitchers. Maybe it isn't all too surprising, considering the Cubs did go after Tanner Scott last offseason before he ended up with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
So, we'll see how serious the Cubs are with these pursuits, but they reportedly have a pretty good list of free agent relievers on their radar this offseason.
