Bombs Over Bombers

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The Mets slugged four home runs while most of their pitching staff did their job, paving the way for the Metropolitans to defeat the Yankees 6-4 in a fake Subway Series matchup. 

The Mets won despite the fact that the players fans were most curious to see - Carson Benge, Mark Vientos, Ryan Clifford - went a combined 0 for 9. Benge, who hit lead-off, didn’t strike out, but he grounded into a double play, his swing seemed a little long to me, and I don’t think he had any opportunities to touch the ball in right field. Swaggy V wasn’t tested at first base. Clifford struck out once, but he did catch a fly ball in left field at least. 

Fortunately, other dudes picked up the slack. Leading off the top of the second against Yankee starter Luis Gil, Jared Young deposited a fastball at eye level over the right center field fence to make it 1-0. If the Canadian hits 15 more of those this spring, he might actually have a shot at the starting right field job. 

Justin Hagenman was doing just fine entering the bottom of the third. He walked two but didn’t allow a run or a hit. That changed when José Caballero punished Hagenman for throwing a hanger down the middle with a solo shot of his own. Hagenman departed with runners on first and second and one out, leaving the mess for RHP Saul Garcia to handle. He struck out Paul Goldschmidt and coaxed Austin Wells to fly out to center to end the threat.

In the top of the fourth, Luis Torrens homered off of Yankees Rule 5 Draft Pick Cade Winquest. Like Young’s homer, Torrens hit it to right center. 

Hayden Senger pinch hit for Torrens in the sixth, and he homered too. It took awhile for me to figure out it was Senger. I just knew it wasn’t Torrens, even though MLB Gameday initially said it was and Michael Kay ID’d the mystery man as Torrens twice. It didn’t help that Senger just changed his jersey number to 6. In the bottom half of the frame, Senger threw out a baserunner. There should be a term for when a catcher homers in one half of an inning and then nabs a wannabe base stealer in the other half. A “Hayden”? We’ll workshop this. 

RHP Brett Banks ran into some trouble in the bottom of the seventh. He permitted a Baltimore Chop infield single and then a clean base hit to left to put runners at the corners with two out. But Banks managed to strike Miguel Palma out to end the inning with the Mets still up 3-1.

The game broke open in the top of the eighth. With one out, Brendan Beck walked Chris Suero and plunked Jacob Reimer. The runners moved up 90 feet when Beck threw a pickoff attempt at second into center field. After a Jackson Cluff infield fly out, 1B JT Schwartz laced a three-run dong to put the game seemingly out of reach at 6-1. Cue the Spaceballs references. Schwartz hit just .205 in Double-A Binghamton in 84 games last year. However, Prospect Hugger and Friend of the Newsletter Ernest Dove believes he might have been playing through an injury 

Brian Metoyer pitched for the Mets in the bottom half of the eighth, and it did not go well to say the least. He allowed a three-run shot by Kenedy Corona. After he hit a batter, Carlos Mendoza raced to the mound to take his ass outta there. Joey Gerber came in and got a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning at 6-4 Mets.

The Yankees made it interesting in the bottom of the ninth, getting the winning run to the plate against Carlos Guzman with one out. Guzman got old chum Zack Short to strike out swinging, then Ernesto Martinez Jr. grounded out to Schwartz at first to end it. The Mets win the Mayor’s Trophy. Somewhere, George Steinbrenner is pissed off.

The Mets and Yankees combined for seven ABS challenges. The Yankees went 2-2 while the Mets went 1-2. That sounds about right - in the minor leagues last season the challenge success rate was around 50 percent. 

Will Sammon visited Brandon Nimmo at Rangers camp in Arizona. I recommend reading the whole article, even though Brandon doesn’t “spill the tea” or anything. Within though, Nimmo revealed that he talked not just with President of Baseball Operations David Stearns but with Steve Cohen before he agreed to the trade. The majority owner told Nimmo that while he cares about him and they have a good relationship, it’s ultimately “David’s team”, meaning Stearns. Brandon holds no hostility with anyone involved, including Francisco Lindor, his main Mets captaincy rival. Also of interest, at least to me: Sammon revealed that “some people with the Mets” believe Nimmo “tried to do too much from a leadership standpoint or tried too hard to lead.” It’s true, you can’t force these things. 

Clay Holmes congratulated the US men’s hockey team for winning the Gold Medal. After the overtime win by Team USA, an unidentified Met player or coach yelled in the clubhouse,  “HOCKEY COUNTRY! SUCK IT!” Poor Jonah Tong, a noted Canadian, was subjected to Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the USA” while working out. I’m pretty sure that goes against the Geneva Convention.

Marcus Semien wants to play every day. Carlos Mendoza knows this, but he told Chelsea Janes, “We have to watch him closely” and that the team needs to “be mindful”. 

Anthony DiComo wrote about where the Mets infield stands at the moment.

Mark Vientos is fine with wherever the Mets want him to play. He started at first yesterday.  

Jorge Polanco thinks he can do a split at first base if need be. Polanco isn’t playing Grapefruit League games yet because his left knee, which he had surgery on two years ago, “requires maintenance.” 

Mets senior vice president of player development Andy Green said Ryan Clifford needs to work on being more aggressive at the plate. 

Jonah Tong signed a Pokemon cap.

14 years ago today, Steve Cohen committed $20 million to purchase a minority stake in the Mets.

11 years ago today, Steve Gelbs was announced as Kevin Burkhardt’s replacement at SNY.

Bobby Bonilla turns 63 years old today.

Today the Mets play the Toronto Blue Jays in Dunedin, Florida. Clay Holmes will get the starting nod for New York (NL), with RHP Tobias Myers and RHP Ryan Lambert also slated to pitch. The Blue Jays will counter with RHP Jose Berrios and others. There’s no Met telecast but the game will be broadcast on Sportsnet in Toronto and available everywhere through MLB.TV. Mets radio will have the call on Audacy WHSQ 880 AM.