MLB Will Meet With Mets About HBP Issues

Updated Post – April 28, 12:40 PM

The Mets will meet with MLB’s executive vice president of baseball operations Morgan Sword per Tim Healey of Newsday. The meeting will take place on Friday before the Mets start their series with the Phillies in New York.

Sword will meet with Mets pitchers and potentially position players as well.

The Mets have expressed their frustrations with the baseballs and other teams after getting hit 19 times in only 20 games. Only four teams in major league history were hit by more pitches in the first 20 games of the season than the Mets have been this year.

Updated Post – April, 27, 1:00 PM

Cardinals pitcher Miles Mikolas responded to Bassitt’s comments from the previous night. Mikolas was the St. Louis starter in the first game of the series.

Mikolas refutes Bassitt’s point about the baseballs being different and that he hasn’t had the same experience.

“It’s not the balls fault. Take some responsibility for your actions,” Mikolas said.

Mikolas also stated that if a player isn’t comfortable with a baseball then they shouldn’t throw it.

Speaking  with the media prior to their game this afternoon, Showalter said the Mets have been in contact with the league office about the baseballs.

“It’s a concern. We’re very lucky that we haven’t had some real serious injury,” Showalter said.

The Mets manager doesn’t want his players to retaliate by hitting opposing players with pitches.

“There’s a lot of emotion flying around,” Showalter said. “Stop. Think this through. There’s a lot of ways to show your toughness other than reciprocating hitting somebody else in the head. Then all of a sudden somebody’s career is over and somebody’s laying there with blood coming out of their ears. How do you really feel? Was it worth it? No, it was kind of stupid. But there’s a lot of frustration.”

Original Post – April 27, 12:35 AM

The Mets have reached their breaking point.

Being hit with 18 pitches in 19 games, they’re fed up.

Three times Cardinals pitchers found body parts of New York players, including Pete Alonso getting hit in the head for the second time this season.

The Mets can’t force pitchers to stop hitting them. Tuesday nights starter Chris Bassitt puts the onus on MLB to do something about it.

“I had some close calls tonight, Bassitt said. “I’ve been hit in the face, I don’t ever want to do that to anybody ever. MLB has a very big problem with the baseballs. They’re bad. Everybody knows it. They don’t care. MLB doesn’t give a damn about it.”

The Mets have seen it more than any other team. Their players have been hit 18 times. No other squad has been hit more than 11 times.

Bassitt says there’s no consistency in the balls provided.

“They’re all different,” Bassitt said. “The first inning, they’re decent. The third inning, they’re bad. The fourth inning, they’re okay. The fifth inning, they’re bad.”

Pitchers don’t want to intentionally hit batters. Without being able to get a proper grip on a baseball it puts the batters at increased risk. Starling Marte was hit by a pitch in the top of the ninth with the bases loaded. Obviously, there was no intention.

“Whether it’s intentional or not, it has to stop,” Marte said. “We’re tired of it and we’re going to have to do something about it if it continues to happen.”

It’s not a secret MLB alters with the baseballs. They confirmed findings that they used two different baseballs during the 2021 season. The Athletic ran a story on Tuesday with findings that league-wide home run rates are down and it can do with what MLB has done to the baseballs.

Another issue with the baseballs and grip specifically has been the crackdown on stick substances by the league. MLB felt that pitchers had too large an advantage with spider tack and other foreign substances being used without repercussion. Now pitchers are searching for a better way to grip the baseball than just plain rosin.

“Sit down with the players and talk about it,” James McCann said about the baseballs. “Don’t take opinions of people that aren’t the ones on the mound trying to throw it.”

“It’s a problem we have in MLB in general,” Buck Showalter said about the lack of command. “My concern is about our team and you talk to a lot of pitchers about the grip. It’s one thing to get hit on the toe or knee but we’re getting a lot of balls in the head and neck. It’s just not good.”

Update April, 27 1:00 PM

Cardinals pitcher Miles Mikolas responded to Bassitt’s comments from the previous night. Mikolas was the St. Louis starter in the first game of the series.

Mikolas refutes Bassitt’s point about the baseballs being different and that he hasn’t had the same experience.

“It’s not the balls fault. Take some responsibility for your actions,” Mikolas said.

Mikolas also stated that if a player isn’t comfortable with a baseball then they shouldn’t throw it.

Speaking  with the media prior to their game this afternoon, Showalter said the Mets have been in contact with the league office about the baseballs.

“It’s a concern. We’re very lucky that we haven’t had some real serious injury,” Showalter said.

The Mets manager doesn’t want his players to retaliate by hitting opposing players with pitches.

“There’s a lot of emotion flying around,” Showalter said. “Stop. Think this through. There’s a lot of ways to show your toughness other than reciprocating hitting somebody else in the head. Then all of a sudden somebody’s career is over and somebody’s laying there with blood coming out of their ears. How do you really feel? Was it worth it? No, it was kind of stupid. But there’s a lot of frustration.”