Jack Weisenburger barely registered when the Mets brought him in, but four big league appearances later, he’s suddenly a lot more interesting than the backstory suggested.
The right-hander came into the organization with some rough numbers attached to him: a 4.11 ERA in Double-A and a 6.68 ERA in Triple-A, with that Triple-A mark coming in 2026 with Syracuse. He had also spent only two games in Mexico before landing in the Mets system this year, which made him look like another one of David Stearns’ under-the-radar independent league finds. Not exactly the kind of résumé that turns heads.
And yet, Weisenburger keeps getting outs.
He worked behind starter Nolan McLean on Friday and covered the final three innings of the Yankees’ offense. After a perfect sixth and seventh, he ran into trouble in the eighth, but still limited New York to one run on three hits. Even with runs allowed in each of his last two outings, the overall read on him is trending positive because of what he did against the Yankees.
The pitch that stands out is the sweeper. Weisenburger has leaned on it more than anything else, and it’s coming in at an average of 82.2 mph.
That’s not some bizarre outlier, either - it matches the average velocity of Yankees reliever Fernando Cruz. His fastball sits a little above 95 mph, but that pitch was the one that got barreled for a double, the only extra-base hit he’s allowed in the majors so far.
The numbers on the sweeper are the part that make you stop and look twice. He’s thrown 37 of them, more than any other pitch, and hitters are 0 for 9 against it with a 31.8% whiff rate.
On the other hand, four of his other five pitches have produced a batting average against of .250 or worse. Some of that may be bad luck, some of it may be hitters getting the better end of the batted-ball game.
The exit velocity against his cutter and sinker is actually lower than it is against the sweeper, but the sweeper is still the pitch nobody has managed to turn into a hit.
That’s what makes Weisenburger worth watching. He’s a 28-year-old rookie who didn’t come in with much buzz, and now he’s at least shown enough to raise the question of whether there’s more here.
Surviving in the majors with one pitch is a rare trick, and Mariano Rivera is the obvious standard for how far that can go. Weisenburger is not the next Mo, but he may have something useful if he can keep building around that one dangerous pitch.
For now, he looks like one of those “make them cut you” arms hanging around the roster. It’s too early to talk about him as a permanent fixture, but the ability to cover multiple innings gives him a real role.
Doing it with one pitch is risky. It’s also the kind of challenge the Mets might be willing to keep exploring.
In Other News...
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Security quickly tackled the man, later identified as 38-year-old Kelly Marcucci, and he was charged with trespassing and a local ordinance violation. The delay was brief, but the moment lingered after play resumed, with the crowd reacting in chants as the game moved on. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Spent This Rivalry Night Chasing An Early Mistake
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A late push gave the Mets a chance to make things interesting, and they kept pressing against their crosstown rival deep into the game. Still, the deficit they created early proved too much to erase in a 6-4 loss, another reminder that against the Yankees, one bad stretch can shape the whole night even when the closing moments offer a flicker of life. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Face A Costly Clay Holmes Question All Over Again
Clay Holmes is back in the kind of free-agent conversation that can make a front office pause. Spotrac pegs the relievers market at roughly $22.9 million a year, with a deal that could climb into the $68 million to $70 million range over three years, and that price tag naturally forces the Mets to weigh how much they want to commit to a pitcher who could help in more than one role. The appeal is obvious: Holmes would give New York another arm to consider for the bullpen or even the starting rotation, which adds flexibility to a staff that still needs quality innings.
The financial picture may get even trickier depending on how the next collective bargaining agreement shapes the market, since timing can move free-agent salaries in either direction. For the Mets, the question is not simply whether Holmes fits, but whether he fits as part of a larger pitching plan that might also include other additions. Sean Manaea and Tarik Skubal enter the broader conversation as benchmarks for value and impact, but Holmes remains the name that could force New York to decide how aggressively it wants to buy stability on the mound. [Read more 🡒]