The Mets have been recovering from their early summer swoon without a reliable left-hander working in a high-leverage bullpen role. But it shouldn’t be too long until this issue is resolved internally.
Among the handful of injured Mets pitchers completing rehab assignments is Brooks Raley, and the veteran southpaw has undoubtedly resembled a reliever eager to contribute at the big league level after a lengthy absence from the game.
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In his second appearance for Triple-A Syracuse on Tuesday, Raley recorded four outs with one strikeout and one hit allowed. His average velocity reached the same high-80s range that radar guns captured before he underwent Tommy John surgery at the age of 35 last season.
“Really good, really good [reports]. The breaking ball, the sinker, the life with the way the ball is coming out,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said of Raley on Wednesday. “He went one-plus yesterday, something that we wanted him to do. Now we’re looking at back-to-back on Saturday and Sunday, and then obviously we have a decision. But the reports are encouraging. This is a guy who I’m really looking forward to having back here.”
Raley aimed for a comeback with a familiar team — he logged 61.2 innings for the Mets between 2023 and 2024 — and right now, he represents much-needed help for a bullpen that owns the third-worst ERA (5.72) in baseball over the last month. He’s struck out 12 batters across eight scoreless frames thus far, demonstrating clear value.
He’s long valued movement on his pitches too, and he’s struck out at least one batter in each of his seven rehab appearances this summer. Raley was an impact reliever at full strength two seasons ago, with a sharp 2.80 ERA in 66 games, and the Mets would obviously welcome similar production from him in the near future.
