Mets re-signing Ryne Stanek to one-year deal

The Mets are re-signing right-handed reliever Ryne Stanek to a one-year deal, reports Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.

The terms of the deal are not yet known.

SNY’s Andy Martino reported earlier this week that the Mets were still looking to add a reliever, noting that the bullpen search was related to the Pete Alonso negotiations.

Martino cited the dollars recently committed to A.J. Minter ($11 million in 2025) and Jesse Winker ($7.5 million in 2025), explaining that adding a higher-tier reliever to the payroll could’ve meant there was less room for Alonso.

“If you go get a Kenley Jansen or somebody kind of on the expensive side reliever, then it becomes even harder to sign Alonso,” Martino noted. “If you get Ryne Stanek or something — to bring him back — maybe there’s a little more room for Alonso. So all these pieces are kind of related, but all of that is to say reliever.”

Now that the Mets have Stanek back in the fold, they could be done adding significant pieces to their bullpen.

Stanek, 33, had an uneven regular season with the Mets in 2024 after being acquired at the trade deadline, posting a 6.06 ERA (4.39 FIP) and 1.28 WHIP in 17 appearances over 16.1 innings. But he had a terrific showing in the playoffs as the Mets made a run to the NLCS.

In his two appearances during the Wild Card Series against the Brewers in Milwaukee, he fired 2.0 perfect innings — including closing out New York’s Game 1 win with Edwin Diaz unavailable.

Stanek was similarly strong over his next four appearances (two against the Phillies in the NLDS, two against the Dodgers in the NLCS), allowing just two runs on four hits across 6.0 innings while walking two and striking out seven. That included the Mets’ Game 5 win over the Dodgers at Citi Field, when Stanek fired 2.1 innings of one-run ball while surrendering just one hit, walking none, and striking out four.

As evidenced by his strong playoff performance, Stanek’s stuff still plays up when he’s on.

That stuff includes one of the highest-octane fastballs in baseball, with Stanek averaging 97.7 mph on his fastball last season. Overall, he was elite when it came to chase rate, whiff percentage, and strikeout rate.

Additionally, Stanek’s xBA in 2024 (.210, in the 87th percentile) and his xERA (3.46, in the 71st percentile) suggests he was a bit unlucky and that his regular season ERA was inflated beyond what it should’ve been.

With Stanek returning, he joins a bullpen that will be headlined by Diaz and also features the newly-signed Minter. Dedniel Núñez, Reed Garrett, and Jose Butto (if he’s not shifted back to the rotation) are also likely to be in the bullpen on Opening Day.

Sean Reid-Foley, Huascar Brazoban, Dylan Covey, and Tyler Zuber are among the other relief options on the 40-man roster.