Manager meets with media before Mets travel to West Palm Beach to face the Houston Astros on Saturday night Carlos Mendoza He addressed a number of topics and players as New York remains in the thick of discussions during spring training.
Clay Holmes, starter
When the Mets signed Holmes last offseason in hopes of converting the career reliever into a starting pitcher, many were skeptical that it would be possible. Even if it does work, and Holmes has adapted to the change and pitched well, concerns about the number of innings he pitched are always at the forefront of the discussion.
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Despite being inconsistent at times in the second half, Holmes actually performed well in his first year as a full-time starter. The right-hander went 12-8 with a 3.53 ERA in 33 games (31 starts) and threw a career-high 165.2 innings.
The only time the right-hander really faltered was in July, when he posted a 4.91 ERA (1.57 WHIP) in six starts, and although he ended up strong (3.09 ERA in September/October), Holmes’ midseason struggles were to be expected as he entered uncharted territory for the first time in his career.
But with that experience, Mendoza feels his starters are now better prepared to enter their second season in the Mets’ starting rotation.
“In his second year after a full year as a starter, he has a better understanding of the routine between outings, how he’s going to pace himself on outings, pitch usage, how he’s going to attack the lineup through the sequence, not just once or twice but three times,” Mendoza said. “…This is a guy who wants to use all the resources, wants to use all the information, and he continues to tinker with the pitch. He’s got pretty good skills against lefties and righties, and he’s in a good position.”
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Not only is Holmes getting more of a feel for being a starter, but he looked like one during training camp with a 2.84 ERA (0.71 WHIP) in 12.2 innings. Not only that, but Holmes was dominant in his only WBC start, going three scoreless innings against UK with six strikeouts.
With the addition of Freddy Peralta and appear Nolan MacLeanNew York’s pitching staff should have fewer question marks than last season, and Holmes’ continued improvement has a lot to do with that.
Carson Benge, starter?
While it’s too early to tell whether Benge has proven himself good enough to be the team’s Opening Day starting right fielder in the spring, the 23-year-old has performed well enough with the Mets to at least put himself in the conversation.
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“Hopefully that’s how it goes the last few days and we have to make some tough decisions because we have a lot of guys that are playing well and healthy,” Mendoza said. “That’s what’s going on with Carson. He continues to go out there, continues to hit good at-bats, play good defense, run bases, get left – so he’s doing what he’s supposed to do.”
Taking a closer look at training camp, Benji went 10-for-27 (.370) with three RBIs, five RBIs, four runs scored and one stolen base in nine games for an OPS of .858.
Benge has played most of his time in right field so far, and on Saturday, Benge was in center field (third at-bat), which Mendoza said was to give him exposure, like they do with other players, “to prepare them for potential situations that could happen during the regular season.”
Mendoza isn’t worried about how his kids will handle the change in location because from everything he’s seen and heard from Benji, he’s been calm. This will benefit him in the major leagues regardless of whether he makes the Opening Day roster.
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“You can tell based on what you hear from the player development staff,” Mendoza said. “[Benge is a] Quiet baseball player, not too high, not too low, and that’s what we’re looking at here. I don’t think this moment will be [too] It’s big for him. To be honest, he is a very neutral person. He went on to do his thing, play baseball, go home, come back the next day and continue doing the same thing. “
Francisco Lindor’s ‘Day-to-Day’ After Minor League Game
Lindor is considered “day-to-day” after just his second minor league game following hamate bone surgery, according to Mendoza.
The shortstop is still expected to play on Opening Day, which has been New York’s message throughout this process. What Lindor does next remains to be seen, but he looked good during the game and had a few at-bats, according to Mendoza.
