Huascar Brazobán Emerging as Key Arm in Mets’ Bullpen

Huascar Brazobán’s second year with the Mets is off to a much better start than the first.

Brazobán was one of four relievers acquired by the Mets last summer, joining Phil Maton, Ryne Stanek and Tyler Zuber in a July bullpen overhaul. While Zuber was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse and never appeared for the big-league club, Maton, Stanek and Brazobán were all expected to play key roles down the stretch.

That proved true for Maton and Stanek. Maton delivered much-needed stability in the later innings, posting a 2.51 ERA and 2.57 FIP across 31 appearances as a reliable bridge to Edwin Díaz. Stanek was similarly effective, compiling a 2.92 ERA and an impressive 2.27 FIP over 12 appearances from Aug. 13 onward, and became an invaluable asset in the postseason.

Brazobán, however, struggled to find his footing. Despite arriving amid the best season of his career – carrying a 2.93 ERA, 2.65 FIP and career-best marks with his WHIP (1.011) as well as his SO/BB ratio (3.09) as a member of the Miami Marlins – the 34-year-old faltered early.

In his second outing with the Mets, he surrendered a three-run homer to the Angels’ Zach Neto in the bottom of the seventh, blowing a 4–2 lead in a game the Mets would go on to lose. From that point on, he was largely kept out of high-leverage spots, finishing with a 5.14 ERA and 4.31 FIP across 21 innings, with 14 walks and 17 strikeouts in 19 appearances.

Still, there were encouraging signs under the hood. Per Baseball Savant, we can see Brazobán excelled at limiting hard contact, ranking in the 100th percentile for all of MLB in both average exit velocity (82.3 MPH) and hard-hit rate (24.6%). He also generated swings and misses at an elite level, ranking in the 84th percentile in chase rate and 82nd in whiff rate.

His most-used pitch, the changeup (thrown 28.9% of the time), was especially effective – holding opponents to a .160 expected batting average (xBA), a .198 expected slugging percentage (xSLG) and a. 205 expected weighted on-base average (xwOBA) with it. Each of those metrics ranked in the top 10 among pitchers who threw at least 200 changeups during the 2024 season.

So far in 2025, Brazobán has been a revelation. Through 25 innings across 19 appearances, he owns a sparkling 1.08 ERA and a solid 3.30 FIP. He’s provided much-needed versatility out of the bullpen, with seven of his appearances covering five or more outs, a crucial supplement to multi-inning options like José Buttó and Max Kranick. Brazobán has also chipped in as an opener, tossing three scoreless innings in that role, and has even seen work in save situations.

While some regression is likely – his expected ERA (3.16) and expected FIP (3.48) suggest he’s been outperforming his peripherals – those figures still point to an above-average reliever. So what’s changed for Brazobán in 2025 that’s driving this success?

One notable development in Brazobán’s 2025 success has been a refined pitch mix. He features four pitches: a changeup, four-seam fastball, sinker, and cutter. After debuting in 2022 as primarily a cutter/changeup pitcher, Brazobán shifted to a more balanced mix last season. This year, however, he’s leaned heavily on his two most effective weapons – the changeup and sinker – which now account for 79% of his total pitches.

He’s also begun tailoring his sequencing based on hitter handedness. Against right-handed batters, Brazobán has significantly increased his sinker usage, throwing it 45.3% of the time – up from 31.3% in 2024 – while mixing in the cutter and changeup as secondary options. Against lefties, the changeup has become his go-to pitch, using it 48.1% of the time – up from 41.2% last season – while complementing it with a mix of four-seamers and sinkers. This more intentional, matchup-specific approach has helped him generate more consistent outs across the board.

For the first time in his career, Brazobán’s best pitch isn’t his changeup: it’s his sinker. With a fastball run value (the run impact of an event based on the runners on base, outs, ball and strike count) in the 97th percentile, his sinker has generated the third-highest run value among primary relief pitchers who’ve thrown at least 100 sinkers in 2025, trailing only former Met Steven Matz and Tyler Rogers.

What’s made the difference? It’s not increased velocity or movement – the underlying “stuff” is largely unchanged. Instead, the secret lies in command. According to FanGraphs’ Location+ metric, Brazobán’s sinker has a 119 Location+ rating this year, meaning he’s 19% better than league average at placing the pitch where it needs to be. That marks a significant improvement from 2024, when his Location+ on the sinker sat at just 94. The improved command is backed up by career-bests in walk rate metrics: just 2.2 walks per nine innings this year (career average: 4.5) and a 4.0 SO/BB ratio (career average: 2.17).

He’s also jumped from the 11th to 77th percentile in walk rate. Combined with slightly above-average pitch quality (104 Stuff+), this improvement in command has helped transform his sinker from a liability into a legitimate weapon to pair with his already strong changeup.

So far in 2025, hitters are managing a slash line of .133 BA/.133 SLG/.155 wOBA against his sinker. While the expected numbers, being .220 xBA/.281 xSLG/.245 xwOBA, suggest some regression is possible, they still represent a massive improvement from 2024, when opponents hit .400/.567/.466 against the pitch. If Brazobán continues to command his sinker with this level of precision, the Mets may have uncovered a hidden gem in their bullpen.

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