Inside The Mets

Mets relievers Drew Smith, Adbert Alzolay already looking ahead to 2026 season

With relievers Drew Smith and Adbert Alzolay not expected to pitch this season, the righties already have their eyes set on the 2026 campaign.

Logan VanDine

Jun 17, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; New York Mets relief pitcher Drew Smith (33) delivers a pitch to the Texas Rangers during the ninth inning at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jim Cowsert-Imagn Images
Jun 17, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; New York Mets relief pitcher Drew Smith (33) delivers a pitch to the Texas Rangers during the ninth inning at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jim Cowsert-Imagn Images / Jim Cowsert-Imagn Images
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The New York Mets may be gearing up for the 2025 season, but relief pitchers Drew Smith and Adbert Alzolay are already looking ahead to 2026.

The Mets re-signed Smith to a one-year, $1 million deal with a club option for the 2026 season, and brought in Alzolay on a two-year minor league deal earlier this offseason. However, the right-handers aren't expected to pitch in 2025 as they're both rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.

Speaking with Tim Healey of Newsday, the two relievers are talking about how they're both rehabbing together this season with the hopes of remaining healthy and playing important roles in New York's bullpen next year.

“We are going to spend a lot of time together down here,” Alzolay said.

Healey is also reporting that once Smith re-signed with the Mets this winter, he immediately introduced himself to Alzolay with the expectation that they would both be on the same rehab plan.

The longest-tenured pitcher for the Mets began last season on the Opening Day roster and got off to a strong start. In 19 appearances, he went 1-1 with a 3.06 ERA, 23 strikeouts, and two saves across 17.2 innings. Unfortunately, Smith's promising season was cut short as the Mets announced on July 13 that he would undergo Tommy John surgery, which kept him out for the rest of 2024 and most likely all of 2025.

“This offseason was one of the tougher offseasons I’ve had, just knowing that when I go to spring training, nothing really changes for me,” Smith said. “You get back with the guys and it feels like every other year. But you know it’s going to be a little different. Focusing on next year is the big goal.”

As for Alzolay, he told Healey that eight teams reached out to him this offseason, but it was the Mets that showed the most interest in him.

“The Mets were the ones who showed the most interest,” Alzolay said. “They said they believe I can help the team late in the game. Whenever I’m healthy, they know what I’m capable of doing.”

Despite enduring a frustrating season with the Chicago Cubs that saw him go 1-4 with a 4.67 ERA across 18 appearances, Alzolay told Healey that it was a "relief" when he found out his struggles were due to a forearm strain. He eventually needed to undergo Tommy John surgery as well.

“My arm was pretty much cooked,” Alzolay said. “It was a relief knowing OK, now we’re going to fix it, you’re going to do the rehab the way you should do it and everything hopefully comes back to normal.”

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The right-hander is also nearly two years removed as the Cubs' closer; in 2023, he pitched to a 2.67 ERA with 22 saves. So if healthy, Alzolay could certainly be a nice addition to the Mets' bullpen in 2026.

When the 29-year-old was ready to throw for the first time this spring down in Port St. Lucie, Smith's advice to his new teammate was to expect some initial shoulder pain.

According to Healey, Smith also began throwing with a 64-68 mph limit. When he hit 72 mph on the radar gun, the Mets' training staff reportedly did not like seeing that due to the circumstances of his injury. Smith, however, didn't seem to make a big deal out of it.

"They were like 'oooh!' Oh my god, come on, it's 72 mph," Smith said. "It's hard not to push, especially when I'm throwing 68. I'm like, this is so stupid."

It is safe to say that both of these bullpen arms are anxious to get back onto a pitcher's mound as soon as possible. In Alzolay's case, he's especially pumped up to be with his new team.

“I really wanted to be here, to be honest,” Alzolay said “I really wanted to join this team and have the opportunity to go out there and compete at the highest level — because this team is built to win now.”

For now, Alzolay and Smith will have to wait until at least 2026.

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Logan VanDine
LOGAN VANDINE

Logan VanDine is a contributing writer for On SI's Mets. Logan is a graduate of Rider University where he majored in Sports Media and minored in Sports Studies. During his time at Rider, Logan worked for Rider's radio station, 107.7 The Bronc as a sports host, producer and broadcaster, and for the school's paper: The Rider News. He began his time with The Rider News as a section writer for sports and was a copy editor for two years followed by being one of the sports editors during his senior year. Logan also placed third in the New Jersey Press Foundation Awards for sports feature writing. Aside from his work at On SI, he is also a writer for FanSided covering the New York Giants and Mets and also covers the Giants for Total Apex Sports. Give him a follow on X: @VandineLogan

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