Anthony Dicomo of MLB.com writes that it was not long after Jose Valverde‘s arrival at Mets camp on Sunday that a small crowd of new teammates gathered around the 35-year-old veteran, pulling up chairs.
If Bobby Parnell is unable to be ready for the start of the season, Valverde or Kyle Farnsworth can temporarily fill the role, but no matter what the veteran Valverde brings to the Mets, he will have a following from the younger players looking for him to share some of his knowledge from over the years.
“I’m here because I want to support the team,” Valverde shares with Dicomo. “If one of the other guys is the closer, that’s fine by me. I want to do my job and support the young kids.”
Dicomo shares that Valverde is happy to be with the Mets, and that Jenrry Mejia and Gonzalez Germen are two pitchers he would like to mentor this spring.
If Valverde brings his A game to the Mets and can also bring along the younger players and help to make them better, his signing may be one that could be a turning point in the off season. Only time will tell.
