Mets Free Agency Wish List: Weakening Braves By Signing Raisel Iglesias Would Be Smart Business

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When it comes to consistency, Raisel Iglesias has been one of the best closers of his generation. He is not a reliever who impresses with powerful raw stuff—since 2021, he has not ranked above the 73rd percentile in fastball velocity—but he has a lethal combination of changeup, sinker, and slider that has allowed him to remain among the elite at generating swings and misses and strikeouts.

Iglesias’ changeup ranked in the 80th percentile in the league in 2026 in run value, recovering from a drop to 29th place in 2025. This shows that, when his command remains consistent and his best weapon is in play, he can still be a reliable closer. In fact, no pitcher has recorded more saves than him since 2023, accumulating 130 in 146 opportunities (89.0%), a percentage that has only been surpassed by Josh Hader (92.4%) and Jhoan Duran (89.1%).

Iglesias has accumulated at least 30 saves in six of his ten MLB seasons since becoming a closer with the Cincinnati Reds in 2017, including two of the last three in 2024 and 2026 as the closer for the Atlanta Braves. Part of that stability is precisely what the New York Mets bullpen needed in 2026. Although it was not as disastrous as in 2025, when they finished with the lowest save percentage of this decade (59.7%), the Mets clearly need some help in the late innings of games.

Another key point that we cannot overlook is that New York recorded just 49 save opportunities throughout the 2026 season, the lowest mark for a full season since the 51 in 2002, when this statistic began being recorded in the official MLB databases. This can be interpreted in several ways, since there will not be many save opportunities if the collective does not function and, especially, the offense is not capable of providing enough leads.

If you can't score and you can't prevent the opponent from scoring runs, it is very difficult for you to generate more save opportunities—which is exactly why the Mets need to make the most of the ones they get. These trends further reinforce the need for the Mets to be aggressive in free agency to try to solve their bullpen problems, which lost several impact arms when Luke Weaver, Huascar Brazoban, Brooks Raley, and A.J. Minter were traded at the deadline. Added to that loss is the inconsistency of Devin Williams, who has been another major disappointment, as he has not been able to return to the level he previously displayed with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Although Williams was placed on the injured list on August 10 after suffering a right shoulder strain, which opened an opportunity for Kodai Senga as a closer, his season-ending stretch once again raised many doubts. He finished with a 5.11 ERA and four saves in six opportunities during his final 13 appearances of the season.

So, for the Mets, Iglesias’ proven consistency could provide a boost to bring stability back to the bullpen. MLB Trade Rumors has his value pegged at $17 million over one year, which is the going rate for a high-quality closer. Paying him and Williams a combined $34 million next year is an unsavory concept, but as far as high-leverage relievers go, Iglesias is probably going to be the most affordable of the bunch.