Baltimore, Maryland: Ryan Helsley Exercises His $14 Million Player Option and Stays With the Orioles for 2027

Ryan Helsley will stay in Baltimore for another season. The right handed reliever will exercise his $14 million player option and remain with the Orioles through 2027, according to a source in a Baltimore Banner report published on Thursday morning.

Helsley, 32, signed a two year, $28 million deal with Baltimore last offseason, and the second season of that contract was a player option, MLB Trade Rumors reported. He will become a free agent again next winter. Players and teams have until Monday, Nov. 2, to make decisions on contract options for the 2027 season, the Banner reported.

A season cut short by his elbow

Helsley missed most of 2026 with elbow inflammation. He appeared in 17 games, recorded eight saves and a 4.11 ERA in 15 1/3 innings, and struck out 21 batters, ClutchPoints reported. He did not pitch for Baltimore again after June, made a rehabilitation appearance in September, and finished the season on the 60 day injured list with discomfort in his right elbow, MLB Trade Rumors reported.

The Banner reported that Helsley's free agent market would likely have been capped by his stints on the injured list, which made taking the option a practical choice. There is no indication that Helsley needs surgery or will miss time in 2027, MLB Trade Rumors reported. He is expected to be ready for spring training and to slot in as a back end bullpen arm alongside right hander Felix Bautista, the Banner reported. Bautista missed the 2026 season after shoulder surgery late in the 2025 season, an injury that played a part in Baltimore signing Helsley in the first place, MLB Trade Rumors reported. How the ninth inning is shared if both men are healthy remains an open question for the spring.

The arm Baltimore is betting on

At his peak with St. Louis from 2022 to 2024, Helsley was one of the most dominant relievers in baseball. He saved 82 games with a 1.83 ERA across those three seasons, with a 34.6 percent strikeout rate, and his fastball averaged better than 99 miles per hour, MLB Trade Rumors reported. His 2026 fastball averaged 98.7 miles per hour, still hard but a mile per hour below his peak, and his 13.2 percent walk rate was the worst he has posted in a full length season, the same report said.

Helsley reached Baltimore after a hard finish to 2025. St. Louis traded him to the Mets at the 2025 deadline, and he allowed 16 runs in 20 innings with New York, MLB Trade Rumors reported. Baltimore still gave him the two year deal, with the option that now keeps him in the bullpen for 2027.

More Orioles decisions are due by Monday

Helsley is the first of several Orioles option calls this week. First baseman Ryan Mountcastle has a $7.5 million club option, right handed starter Zach Eflin has a $25 million mutual option, outfielder Luis Robert Jr. has a $20 million club option, and left handed reliever Dietrich Enns has a $3.5 million club option, the Banner reported. The business of the offseason is expected to slow when the collective bargaining agreement between the league and the players union expires on Dec. 1, just before midnight, the Banner reported.