Mets opened their spring training slate with a 6-2 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday afternoon in Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Here are the key things to know from after the game:
Plan to monitor Clay Holmes‘ transition to starter
Holmes pitched a perfect three innings Saturday, showing the Mets the potential he has as a starter. However, there’s still a transition period Holmes and the Mets have to go through after the right-hander was a reliever for so long.
Manager Carlos Mendoza was asked about how they plan to monitor Holmes’ health after every start.
We’re going to treat him the same way we treat all of our starters,” Mendoza said. “He’s physically built for it. He’ll go through the same testing that we do in the training room.
“Yes, we’ll watch him but so far, the way he’s responding…the one thing you have to give credit is the low days. Tomorrow, for instance, keeping those days low. As a reliever, you want to keep on throwing but now, understanding you have four-five days to recover and adjusting that routine and all that. We’ll watch him but at the same time, we’ll listen to him as well.”
Holmes said after his start that he threw around 15 extra pitches in the bullpen. Mendoza confirmed that the plan for Holmes was to throw around 45 pitches Saturday, but since he only threw in the mid-30s, they wanted to stretch their right-hander out some more.
Carlos Mendoza’s reaction to seeing Juan Soto hit
“I like him.”
That was the answer the Mets skipper gave when asked how he liked his new right fielder. And what’s not to like? Soto ushered in his Mets tenure with a home run in his first at-bat Saturday.
But Mendoza is equally as impressed by just how “locked-in” Soto is whenever he gets into the batter’s box.
“Pretty incredible, not going to lie,” Mendoza said. “Been watching this guy take live at-bats the last four-five days. Different guy in a different uniform and he’s just locked in. Regardless of the result, he was a different guy in the box today. You just saw his demeanor in the box and then he goes out there and hits that homer. Yeah, incredible.”
Fans pack Clover Park
There was plenty of talk surrounding the attendance at Citi Field last season even while the Mets were in the midst of a playoff push.
However, with renewed enthusiasm and higher expectations — and the addition of Soto — the Mets faithful showed out on Saturday afternoon.
Clover Park experienced the second-largest opener in its history, hosting 7,394 people.
“Pretty good. The 7-Line in here is pretty neat, pretty special. Shout out to them,” Mendoza said of the crowd after Saturday’s game. “I’ll get with Juan [to get his thoughts]. I don’t know if he’s familiar with it. It’s good to see a packed house. Good to see the crowd in here today.”
“It’s been really cool to see them enjoying the moment and enjoying this time,” Soto said of the reception from the fans. “First year with the Mets and everything, it’s going to be unforgettable.”
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