New York Mets decide on two veteran relivers

Raley and Smith began the 2024 season together in the Mets bullpen. After tossing seven scoreless innings to start the year, Raley suffered an elbow injury that required surgery in May. Just two months later in July, Smith underwent the same season-ending procedure after starting the year with a solid 3.06 ERA in 19 appearances.

Both pitchers became free agents after the 2024 season, but ended up signing similar one-year deals. Raley agreed to a $1.85 million contract with a team option for 2026 to return to the Mets on April 25, 2025, when it was clear he was progressing toward a return. Smith signed a one-year, $1 million contract with a club option on February 12, 2025.

While Smith is yet to return to MLB action, Raley recovered well and was one of the Mets' most reliable bullpen arms in 2025. After joining the team in mid-July, the 37-year-old made 30 appearances (25.2 innings) and boasted a 2.45 ERA with 10 holds.

Raley was impressive in the year before his injury too, maintaining a 2.80 ERA across 66 appearances (54.2 innings) in 2023. After making his big-league debut with the Cubs in 2012, Raley had a five-year MLB hiatus in which he pitched for the Lotte Giants in the KBO League. He returned in 2020 and suited up for both the Reds and Astros, but fully revitalized his career in 2022 by producing a strong 2.68 ERA across 60 games (53.2 innings) with the Tampa Bay Rays.

Smith, on the other hand, has spent his entire big-league career in New York. After being selected in the third round of the 2015 MLB Draft by the Detroit Tigers, Smith spent two years in the minor leagues before being traded to the Rays in April 2017 and flipped to the Mets three months later for Lucas Duda. He made his major league debut less than a year later on June 22, 2018, but missed all of 2019 after undergoing his first Tommy John surgery during spring training.

In his six seasons spanning eight years with the Mets, the 32-year-old Smith has a 3.48 ERA and 202 strikeouts in 191 appearances (196.1 innings). Smith's best years came in 2021 (2.40 ERA) and 2022 (3.33 ERA), and he added 1.1 innings to the Mets' combined no-hitter started by Tylor Megill against the Phillies on April 29, 2022.

On Monday, fellow Mets left-hander A.J. Minter exercised his $11 million player option to return to the club. Minter, who suffered a torn lat in May, is expected to be back around the start of next season. With Minter and Raley now under contract, New York's options for high-leverage lefties already look to be in good shape.

But outside of the pair, there are still many questions left in the bullpen. After opting out of his contract as expected, Edwin Diaz joined Tyler Rogers, Ryan Helsley, Gregory Soto, and Ryne Stanek as Mets relievers on the open market. With Smith now a free agent too, it is reasonable to expect that they will offer him a more team-friendly deal as he looks to return from injury in 2026.