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The calendar has turned to February, which can only mean one thing: spring training is right around the corner. The Mets are coming off a 101-win campaign, their first playoff berth since 2016, and are aiming to make the playoffs in consecutive years for just the third time in franchise history.
The Mets had a busy off-season, handing out more major league deals than any other team in the league, but also dealing with an abundance of departures. The winter was full of highs, lows, and an array of emotions in between. But with all of that in the rearview mirror, the attention of Mets fans turns to Clover Park in Port St. Lucie, Florida.
There are tons of names, dates, and stories to know heading into camp, so here is a Mets Fan’s Guide to Spring Training 2023.
Old Faces in New Places, and New Kings in Queens
The Mets entered the off-season with a good chunk of their 40-man roster slated to hit the open market, 15 to be exact. No one expected the Mets to return all 15 players, but it was a major question as to how many would return. The Mets wound up bringing three of their impending free agents back to Queens: CF Brandon Nimmo, RHP Edwin Díaz, and RHP Adam Ottavino.
However, that does mean that several key Mets from 2023 have departed: Jacob deGrom (Texas), Chris Bassitt (Toronto), Taijuan Walker (Philadelphia), Seth Lugo (San Diego), Joely Rodriguez (Boston), Trevor May (Oakland), Trevor Williams (Washington), Mychal Givens (Baltimore), Dominic Smith (Washington), and a few remain on the free agent market: Tyler Naquin and Terrance Gore. The Mets also shipped James McCann to Baltimore in a deal for minor league outfielder Luis de la Cruz.
The Mets signed Jeff McNeil to a four-year contract extension this winter as well, locking the reigning batting champion in for two additional seasons in Queens beyond his arbitration years.
However, with all the departures, comes a wealth of new talent dawning the orange and blue. Headlining the group is 2022 AL Cy Young winner and future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander. Verlander comes to Queens for his age 40 and 41 seasons, but is coming of his best season in years. Much like a bottle of GTS, Verlander is getting better with age. Following Verlander into the Mets’ rotation on guaranteed Major League deals are two other names: RHP Kodai Senga and LHP Jose Quintana. Senga comes over from the NPB on a five-year deal with an opt-out after year three, and Quintana returns to the team that signed him out of Colombia in 2006.
In the bullpen, the Mets did a lot of heavy lifting. They started with every reliever aside from Drew Smith hitting the open market, there was a ton of heavy lifting to be done. The team locked up Edwin Díaz for five years, brought Adam Ottavino back on a deal with an option for a second, brought in David Robertson on a one-year deal, traded for Tampa Bay’s lefty Brooks Raley, and selected Zach Greene from the Yankees in the Rule 5 draft. They also added several depth arms: they claimed RHP Stephen Ridings, RHP Sam Coonrod, and RHP William Woods. They traded for RHP Elieser Hernandez, and RHP Jeff Brigham, and reached minor league deals with RHP Jimmy Yacabonis, LHP TJ McFarland, the returning RHP Sean Reid-Foley, and RHP Tommy Hunter.
On the offensive side of things, the Mets got some more work done. They brought back Nimmo, signed catcher Omar Narváez to a one year deal with an option, had a deal in principle with INF Carlos Correa before he wound up going back to the Twins, signed OF Tommy Pham to a one-year pact, brought in utility man Danny Mendick on a one-year deal, although he carries a few more years of club control, and also signed a few notable names to minor league deals: INF Jose Peraza, OF Tim Locastro, OF Abraham Almonte, OF DJ Stewert, and C Michael Perez. The team cut former outfield prospect Khalil Lee while he is in the midst of a domestic abuse investigation by both Major League Baseball and legal authorities.
The Spring Training Roster
The Mets are bringing a host of players to Port St. Lucie. Below, the roster will be broken down into three categories: Major League guaranteed deals, 40-man roster with minor-league options, and Non-Roster Invitees (NRI). However, there are some obvious locks for the initial 26-man roster who have options, meaning the “40-man With Options” section does NOT imply some sort of roster bubble. Here is how it all breaks down:
Major League Deals Without Options
Pitchers – Justin Verlander, Jose Quintana, Edwin Díaz, Adam Ottavino, Brooks Raley, David Robertson, Stephen Nogosek, Max Scherzer, Carlos Carrasco. Additionally, Greene must be on the active roster or IL all season or be returned to his original team.
Position Players – Brandon Nimmo, Omar Narváez, Starling Marte, Francisco Lindor, Daniel Vogelbach, Mark Canha, Eduardo Escobar, Darin Ruf, Thomas Nido.
40-Man With Options
Pitchers -Kodai Senga, Drew Smith, Eliezer Hernandez, Sam Coonrod, Stephen Ridings, Jeff Brigham, Bryce Montes de Oca, John Curtiss, David Peterson, Joey Lucchesi, Tylor Megill, Jose Butto.
Position Players – Danny Mendick, Jeff McNeil, Tommy Pham, Pete Alonso, Luis Guillorme, Brett Baty, Francisco Álvarez, Ronny Mauricio, Mark Vientos.
Non-Roster Invitee (according to Mets.com)
Pitchers – TJ McFarland, Connor Grey, Grant Hartwig, Tommy Hunter, Zach Muckenhirn, Eric Orze, Denyi Reyes, Josh Walker, William Woods, Jimmy Yacabonis
Position Players – Nick Meyer, Kevin Parada, Michael Perez, Hayden Senger, Jose Peraza, Jonathan Araúz, Abraham Almonte, Lorenzo Cedrola, Tim Locastro, Alex Ramirez, DJ Stewart
Coaching Staff
For the most part, the Mets’ coaching staff looks the same as it did last year. Manager Buck Showalter is returning for his second season at the helm, pitching coach Jeremy Hefner is back for his fourth season, and base coaches Wayne Kirby and Joey Cora are back for their second campaigns as the Mets first and third base coaches respectively. Assistant Major League coach Danny Barnes is returning as well. Finally, longtime bullpen catchers Eric Langill and Dave Racaniello are both back with the Mets.
However, the Mets did make a few changes to their coaching staff this winter: Eric Chavez was promoted to bench coach, Jeremy Barnes to hitting coach, and Glen Sherlock was assigned to catching and strategy coach. The team hired Eric Hinske as the assistant hitting coach, and Dom Chiti as bullpen coach.
The World Baseball Classic
The Mets will have an abundance of players representing their home countries in this year’s World Baseball Classic. The following players made official rosters that were announced on February 9th: Alonso, Díaz, Escobar, Hernandez, Lindor, McNeil, Narváez, Ottavino, Quintana, and Raley. Additionally, five Mets minor leaguers made a WBC roster: P Dominic Hamel, LHP Cam Opp, RHP Claudio Scotti, RHP Humberto Mejia, and INF Jonathan Araúz.
While these players will all be absent from camp, some will briefly return to camp as the Mets play scrimmages Team Nicaragua and Team Venezuela on March 8th and 9th respectively.
The WBC will run from March 8th through March 2oth, with a winner being crowned at LoanDepot park in Miami. The US won the last tournament in 2017, and will look to defend its title this year. Players on WBC rosters will return to their respective team’s camp after their national team’s play wraps up in the tournament. Expect some Mets to trickle back into camp as some teams, like the United States or Puerto Rican team, are expected to make deep runs, and others are expected to see quick exits.
Spring Training Schedule
The Mets schedule for spring training is already released and times have been assigned. First, however, pitchers and catchers report on February 15th, with full team workouts beginning on the 20th. Several players have already reported to camp, however, with many more to come.
The Mets will play 16 games at Clover Park, 14 road games, four-night games at home, two split-squad games, and two World Baseball Classic scrimmage games. Games begin with a split squad on February 25th, with the home half being played at 6:10 EST. In total, the Mets play 30 games and have two days off: March 6th and March 21st.
Games will start on the 25th, and wrap up with home game on March 26th against the Marlins. The TV and radio schedule for Mets games has yet to be released, but it should be expected in the coming days. Expect SNY to carry most of their home games. Any televised game this Spring, whether it be the Mets’ broadcast or the opposing team’s broadcast, will be available for MLB.TV subscribers.
F(ake)quently Asked Questions
Q: Is Carlos Correa a Met?
A: No. Next question.
Q: What happens to Brett Baty, Francisco Álvarez, and Mark Vientos?
A: The Mets called up the trio of top prospects at various points in the late stages of the 2022 campaign. Baty got the most run of the group, but his season ended with thumb surgery in early September. Baty should have the best chance to break camp, especially with Escobar away from camp for a while in the WBC. He doesn’t seem to be the third baseman as of today, but things can change.
Vientos got some DH reps, but is still blocked by Darin Ruf on the Major League roster. Reading between the lines, Álvarez figures to be the Opening Day catcher… in Syracuse. There are two catchers with guaranteed MLB deals ahead of him, and the Mets are said to not believe his defense is Major League ready just yet. However, that does not mean he can’t take over the full-time catching gig at some point in the season.
Q: Wait, Darin Ruf is still a Met?
A: Yes! Ruf remained on the 40-Man roster throughout the winter and is a strong bounce-back candidate for the Mets. If he is able to return to his prior form as a lefty-mashing DH, the Mets could have a strong campaign from the number 0 position on the scorecard.
Q: So did the Mets just return the same lineup from last year?
A: From the end of the year, yes, However, the offense was far from their issue down the stretch. Expect Vogelbach and Ruf to split DH reps to start the year, but don’t expect Ruf to have a long leash. Between him, Vientos, and the possibility of Escobar if Baty pushes himself into 3B plans, there are a handful of options to be the Mets’ LH DH. Mark Canha and Starling Marte will once again man the corners in the outfield for the Mets. However, unlike last year, the Mets will go into camp with their 4th outfielder already decided in Tommy Pham, something they did not do last year.
Q: Well… will they be good this year? Is it even worth paying attention to spring training?
A: By all accounts, the Mets should be one of the best teams in baseball again this year. 101 wins is a tough act to follow, but this team will give that a good run for its’ money. If it is at all possible to get to St. Lucie County, do it! It is always worth going to spring training. One could argue it is the most candid and down-to-earth environment that a professional athlete is ever in. Camp in Port St. Lucie is a great place to be, and who knows, maybe you could say you went to spring training the year they won it all!
Q: Will Keith Hernandez still be calling games?
A: Reportedly, yes! Hernandez and SNY were said to be far apart on contract terms during the winter, but as time progressed, reports on the future of the Mets’ Hall of Famer grew more and more positive. On early Monday morning, WFAN’s Morning Show with Boomer & Gio reported through their Twitter account that Hernandez had agreed to a new deal with SNY, ending what had become a winter-long saga that started to worry some Mets fans.
Spring baseball is right around the corner for the Mets, and for the first time in a long time, there is a feeling going into camp that the Mets are a legitimate title contender. Their hopes were dashed last year in a quick one-and-done, but can they reconcile that this year and bring a Commissioner’s trophy back to Queens for the first time in 36 years? Well, the journey starts this week in Port St. Lucie, Florida.
