Free Agent Profile: Pete Fairbanks, RP
Pete Fairbanks, RP
Position: RP B/T: R/R
Player Data: Age: 31 (12/16/1993)
2025 Traditional Stats: 61 G, 60 1/3 IP, 2.83 ERA, 1.044 WHIP, 59 SO, 18 BB
2025 Advanced Stats: 145 ERA+, 24.2 K%, 7.4 BB%, 3.04 xERA, 3.63 FIP, 3.76 xFIP, 1.2 bWAR, 1.0 fWAR
RUNDOWN
Drafted by the Texas Rangers in the ninth round of the 2015 draft, Pete Fairbanks burst onto the scene in Tampa Bay after being dealt from Texas in 2019. His main breakout year was the COVID-shortened season, in which he threw 26.2 innings with a 2.70 ERA. In a year when the Rays made it to the World Series, Fairbanks was one of their main contributors out of the bullpen.
His best year, 2022, had a delayed start after suffering a torn lat during spring training, which made him miss time until mid-July. When he came off the IL, he was elite, putting up a 1.13 ERA, 43.7% strikeout rate, and a 0.86 FIP in 24 games.
Fast forwarding to 2023, his first full season as a closer was a success, gathering 25 saves and a 2.58 ERA. His name was on everybody’s radar at that point. Going into 2024, expectations were high, but Fairbanks didn’t live up to the standards he set the season moving, seeing his ERA jump almost a full run and his strikeout rate drop from 37% to 23%. It wasn’t a great season, but also not a bad one.
Fairbanks came back in 2025 and showed that he can still shut down big league batters at a solid rate. While his strikeout rate only went up .4%, his walk rate dropped almost 2%, and his barrel rate fell to 4.8. The 31-year-old figured out a new way to approach batters, as his stuff+ has fallen from 149 (career high in 2022) to 111 this past season. Instead of trying to overpower batters, he’s simply just thrown as many strikes as possible, limiting walks and limiting damage. Combine that with a 24% strikeout rate, and you still have a really good pitcher.
Contract
The Rays declined to re-up Fairbanks for 2026 at $11 million. Fairbanks on the open market could get more than that with more years attached. MLB Trade Rumors predicts Fairbanks will get a two-year contract worth $18 million, which isn’t a bad deal for many teams, as you can potentially get a top-end closer at a solid price tag. It’s worth noting that Fairbanks has Raynaud’s syndrome, which makes it difficult for him to pitch in cold weather, and that may scare off some northern teams from signing him.
Recommendation: Worth Checking In
Signing Fairbanks really only makes sense for the Mets if they cannot retain Edwin Díaz, as to put it simply, I don’t believe, looking at Stearns’ track record, that he will commit to two hefty deals in the bullpen. At that same point, if the Mets can find a way to retain Díaz while also bringing Fairbanks, their back end of the bullpen could be one of the best in baseball. Time will tell us how the cards will fall, but hopefully the Mets find a way to retain Díaz or get Fairbanks, or maybe both.
The post Free Agent Profile: Pete Fairbanks, RP appeared first on Metsmerized Online.