Mets reliever Ryan Helsley had another rough outing in Wednesday's loss to the Tigers, giving up a three-run home run in the seventh inning to put Detroit up for good, 6-2.
The former two-time All-Star closer's ERA has ballooned to 11.45 over 14 appearances with New York since being acquired at the trade deadline from St. Louis. Overall, he's given up 14 earned runs in just 11.0 IP.
It's hard to make sense of Helsley's performances since joining the Mets, as he was pitching to a 3.00 ERA over 36 appearances with the Cardinals. Even manager Carlos Mendoza is confused by the poor outings, but the team will continue to look for answers to solve the right-hander's struggles.
"Yeah, I mean that's the frustrating part here," Mendoza said. "This is a guy, you look up and it's 102 [mph] and they continue to take some really good swings. Then the way they're taking the breaking ball, too. And I don't think it's tipping-related; he's made some adjustments.
"Talking to Hef [Jeremy Hefner], how do we help this guy? Because right now we're not doing it. When you got that type of stuff and they keep hitting it, something's going on here."
Mendoza pointed out that some of Helsley's issues come from not getting the right amount of elevation on his fastballs. The home run to Kerry Carpenter was a 100 mph fastball low and inside, allowing the lefty to turn on it with a 106.3 mph exit velocity and send it into the right field stands.
"I think for me, that's the biggest thing, his ability to elevate the fastball," Mendoza said. "We saw it again today, that homer there is a fastball in the power zone for the lefties. When he's effective, when he's at his best, he's able to elevate the fastball and right now we're not doing that."
Helsley said it's tough to figure out what's wrong when "everything's falling," but he knows he has to keep working when given the chance to pitch.
"Just trying anything and everything," Helsley said. "Feels like [I] make a good pitch and it gets hit and then mistakes obviously get hit as well. Seems like everything's falling. Obviously can't walk guys and got to compete out there. Just keep trying to get after it when I'm out there."
The reliever then noted that he needs to "get back to the basics" to improve his pitch execution.
"Yeah, I would say it's been OK, could probably be a little better," Helsley said. "Feels like guys are swinging at 100 like it's 91 right now, so when you feel like you got to be perfect out there, it's not a good thing. Just trying to get back to the basics and start at square one. Try to get back to form and be myself and help the team win."
Helsley was also asked about changes he's made to his delivery to avoid tipping pitches, saying they've gone well and he'll become more comfortable with those adjustments over time.
"A few things, I'm trying to work on it all," Helsley said. "Obviously, the hands have changed and the positioning has changed. It's felt pretty good, honestly, overall. I didn't love it at first and I think obviously the more I do it, the more I get comfortable with it."
Mendoza thought today's situation, with the Mets down 3-2 in the seventh, would have been a good spot for Helsley to right his previous outings. He still believes in him going forward and shot down any notion that pitching in New York has anything to do with his issues.
"I wouldn't say New York, this guy is a closer," Mendoza said. "Closers, especially when you're that good… Whether it's New York, St. Louis, whatever the case might be, big league players are going to go through stretches where it's hard. But I wouldn't put it on New York, this guy's built for it."
Starter Clay Holmes, who also struggled over 4.2 IP on Wednesday, spoke from experience as a closer about Helsley's rough stretch and expressed his and the team's belief in him.
"I've been traded midseason, I've been a closer, I've had a lot of success there, had some failures there," Holmes said. "I mean, there's a lot that goes with all this stuff. Especially moving teams, moving roles. You're in a playoff chase. There's a lot that goes on there. The game's never as easy as it is. When you add some of those things, there are times you may not be your best.
"I think we all have a lot of confidence in Ryan. Obviously, his stuff's still there, he has the makeup, he has the work ethic. You've got to keep moving forward and keep believing in yourself and finding ways to get better… Like I said, he has the makeup, he's putting the work in, he wants it. Guys like that, you can see him coming out the other end really good. It's just times like this can get rough."
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