With Ryan Helsley and Devin Williams already off the board, the late-inning market has thinned to the point where only a handful of arms still feel capable of handling playoff leverage. Edwin Diaz is the biggest name left. Robert Suarez, Kenley Jansen, Tyler Rogers and a few others are still in play.
But for teams willing to gamble on ceiling more than safety, Pete Fairbanks has become one of the most intriguing arms still available.
That says a lot about where the league thinks the upside still lives, because Fairbanks is coming off one of the most uneven seasons of his career.
He finished 2025 with a 4.18 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP in 56 appearances. His strikeout rate dipped from 34.3 percent to 27.8 percent. His velocity, once comfortably touching 99 mph, sat closer to 97.3. Hitters generated a.338 expected wOBA against him, his worst mark since 2020, and his slider lost nearly an inch of sweep.
Nothing about the surface numbers looked like the version of Fairbanks who bulldozed through lineups from 2022–24. Another huge red flag is that the Tampa Bay Rays, who built Fairbanks into the pitcher he is, declined his option this winter instead of trying to flip him for prospects.
And yet, teams keep coming. They’re not just betting on a bounce-back. They’re betting the elite version is still in there.
A big part of the Fairbanks equation is something he’s discussed publicly: Raynaud’s syndrome, a vascular condition that restricts blood flow in cold weather and can cause finger numbness. Early in the season or in cold parks, the feel for his slider can disappear in real time. His command wobbles. The entire shape of his arsenal shifts. The splits have shown it for years and it’s one reason warm-weather clubs or domed ballparks see more upside than risk here.
That explains why Toronto, Detroit and Miami have all shown interest, according to MLB Network's JP Morosi. Toronto needs strikeouts after a year-long bullpen unraveling, and the dome is a real selling point in this case. Detroit has been looking for a leverage arm as it pushes toward contention. Miami simply needs someone who can miss bats, and can possibly flip for prospects at the deadline.
Fairbanks isn’t the safest reliever left in free agency.
Diaz probably gets that honor, or maybe Suarez, depending on the medicals. But Fairbanks remains the one with the widest split between floor and ceiling. In a winter where the market for late-inning help has dried up quickly, that ceiling is exactly what teams are paying for. And someone is likely to make that bet before the Winter Meetings even begin.
