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

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.”