2025 Fantasy Baseball: New York Mets Closer Depth Chart
In the early draft season, fantasy drafters expect a big comeback year from Edwin Diaz after securing only 20 saves last season. His strikeout ability is sensational, and batters struggle to hit his arsenal.
Edwin Díaz, 101mph ⛽️
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 10, 2024
And the Mets Advance! 🍾 pic.twitter.com/r9BlvPy0mh
CL – Edwin Diaz, NYM (ADP – 38.4)
After missing 2023 with a right knee injury (patellar tendon surgery), Diaz had an up-and-down last season. His arm was pace over his 15 appearances (2.30 ERA, 0.766 WHIP, and 23 strikeouts over 15.2 innings) while converting five of his six save tries. Unfortunately, he lost his rhythm over his following five games (eight runs, 13 baserunners, two home runs over 4.1 innings with three blown saves).
The Mets placed him on the injured list for 18 days in late May with a right shoulder issue. Diaz missed another 10 games four weeks later (suspension). Over his final 35 games, he converted 15 of his 18 saves with five wins, 2.41 ERA, 0.921 WHIP, and 54 strikeouts over 33.2 innings.
Diaz had excellent command (three walks and 42 strikeouts over 101 at-bats) against right-handed batters (.158 BAA). His average fastball (97.6) remains elite despite being 1.5 mph lower than in 2022. He continued to feature an electric slider as a high-volume pitch (47.2% usage – .175 BAA), and batters struggled to make contact with his four-seamer (.165 BAA).
Fantasy Outlook: Since his 57-save season in 2018, Diaz hasn’t had over 32 saves in any other year. His strikeouts are the edge over Emmanuel Clase, but he must get more chances at finishing games to be worth his higher price point this draft season. There are many reasons to like him, but not one to move Diaz past some of the other top closers getting drafted later than him. The Mets will be better offensively, creating more wins, so I’ll set his bar at a sub-3.00 ERA and 100+ strikeouts with 35+ saves.
Top Mets Handcuff – A.J. Minter, NYM
The Mets signed Minter in mid-January for two seasons ($22 million). He had hip surgery (labrum issue) last August while also landing on the injured list in late May with the same problem. New York expects him to be ready for opening day.
Minter pitched at an elite level in April (5-2 with a 2.63 ERA, 0.732 WHIP, and 15 strikeouts over 13.2 innings). His hip injury led to weaker command in May (five walks over 7.2 innings). Over his final 25 games, he allowed eight runs, 27 baserunners, and four home runs over 20.2 innings with 20 strikeouts.
His average fastball (94.8) was a career-low. Minter brings a four-seamer (.208 BAA), cutter (.229 BAA), and changeup (.115 BAA) to the table, with each pitching grading as an asset.
Fantasy Outlook: Over his eight years with the Braves, Minter picked up 36 saves while never locking down a full-time closer job. His command has been much better over the past three seasons (2.5 walks per nine), leading to a 2.82 ERA, 1.041 WHIP, and 21 strikeouts over 169.0 innings. He finished with a decline in his strikeout rate (8.9) in 2024, but it was probably injury-related. Minter will be found in the free-agent pool in most fantasy leagues.
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With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.