Per Chelsea Janes of SNY, the Mets have checked in with left-handed reliever Brooks Raley. Raley pitched across four seasons with the Mets to a 2.31 ERA and 1.08 WHIP across 128.2 innings but struggled heavily in Philadelphia after being traded (The Mets received OF John Spikerman and RHP Luke Gabrysh), posting a 7.94 ERA and 1.94 WHIP across sixteen games. Raley enters his age-39 season in 2027.
He had a great stretch for the Mets in 2026, posting a 1.96 ERA and 1.09 WHIP over 41.1 innings, but under the hood, most of his metrics had taken a big step back. His velocity was down roughly half a mile per hour across the board; he ran a strikeout rate of 22.8% compared to 25.3% in 2025, while also walking a significantly higher rate of batters at 8.9% compared to 6.1% in 2025. Raley did not allow a single barrel in 2025, but in 2026 he ran a roughly league-average 6.7% barrel rate.
The Mets need a left-handed reliever to pair with Nate Lavender. Per Will Sammon of The Athletic, the Mets have expressed interest in Alex Vesia and Tim Hill during their wide-cast search to strengthen the bullpen. Vesia, 30, pitched to a 2.64 ERA through 58 innings (72 games) with the Dodgers in 2026, striking out 74. Hill, 36, appeared in 64 games for the Yankees, posting a 4.60 ERA through 58.2 innings, striking out 25.
Per Joel Sherman of the New York Post, Darwinzon Hernández, who pitched for the Red Sox from 2019 to 2022 and most recently pitched with the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks since 2023, is looking to make a comeback and pitch in the majors again. Sherman notes the Mets are among the teams interested in the lefty, who pitched to a 1.41 ERA in 44.2 innings and struck out 55 in 2026.
