3 NY Mets offseason moves that won’t benefit them in 2025 but could in 2026

2) Signing Adbert Alzolay

A two-year minor league contract is what Adbert Alzolay received from the Mets this offseason. Another pitcher recovering from Tommy John surgery, he was a smart pickup and an even more affordable one than Smith. The Chicago Cubs let him go this offseason rather than pay a player to stick around knowing he’d be unavailable. And to think we ever believed they’d steal Pete Alonso.

Alzolay became a well-known reliever in 2023 when he was thrust into the closer spot in Chicago. A 2.67 ERA and 22 saves, he did it with incredible precision. Alzolay walked batters at a clip of only 1.8 per 9 that year. While the strikeouts were only slightly above one per inning at 9.4 per 9, we’ll take a strike thrower any day especially when he’s unlikely to be the closer anyway.

Being the ones to add Alzolay showed a lot about the Mets’ thought process as well as the reputation of their team. Not many clubs are willing to pay a guy to sit out a year. Smith and Alzolay are wild card investments for sure. Alzolay, on a minor league pact no less, fits even better as there’s no pressure at all to make sure they get something out of him.