PORT ST. LUCIE — Tuesday marked one month since the report date for Mets pitchers and catchers. Enough of spring training has passed that a general feel to the club may have started to develop.
There are still jobs to be won on the Opening Day roster, but we’ve reached the point in camp where players have become familiar with each other and it’s mostly about getting to March 28 with the pitching staff ready, without further injuries.
The Mets’ only significant physical setback so far is Kodai Senga’s shoulder strain that will likely keep him from pitching for the team until at least early May. Jeff McNeil hasn’t played in an exhibition game yet, but is progressing in workouts after biceps soreness sidelined him earlier in camp. McNeil is expected to be ready for the season opener.
For a player’s assessment of where things stand with this team, we enlisted Francisco Lindor, who was outspoken in his belief at the start of camp that the Mets have a playoff-caliber club.
What has Lindor learned about the team in spring training?
The Mets are sound defensively: Lindor used the word “dynamic” to describe the position players on the 40-man roster.
“We have got a lot of players that can play defense,” Lindor said. “A lot of players that can move around.”
Harrison Bader and Tyrone Taylor have helped improve the Mets’ outfield defense and Starling Marte is moving with the pep he had in his step two years ago, before he underwent surgery on both groins.
Marte, Bader and Nimmo have begun playing together in the outfield, and Lindor has marveled at the athleticism on display.
“That is three center fielders,” Lindor said. “One of my thoughts is if the other team hits the ball up in the air and it’s really high up, they are all going to go after the ball. Are they going to run into each other? They can move.”
Francisco Alvarez’s offseason workouts weren’t a mirage: Lindor saw video of the 22-year-old catcher working out in the offseason and was impressed. But Alvarez has wasted little time showing his improvement — most notably his throws to second base — leaving Lindor convinced the Mets have an “elite” talent.
“He’s a good player and he asks questions,” Lindor said. “It seems like he wants to get better and he seems like he doesn’t get offended by criticism. That is beautiful.”
Lindor, from his shortstop position, calls pitches in his head. He often has questions for Alvarez about why the catcher and pitcher were or weren’t on the same page in a certain situation. Lindor has found himself learning from Alvarez.
“I will say, ‘What is the reason behind this pitch?’ ” Lindor said. “And [Alvarez] has a reason. I am open to it too. I am learning or relearning stuff, so people are going to come up to me and give me their input.”
The Mets don’t have an ace — until they do: After playing three seasons with stars such as Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander atop the Mets’ rotation, Lindor isn’t deterred by the lack of that caliber pitcher on the staff this spring.
Senga, Luis Severino, Jose Quintana, Sean Manaea and Adrian Houser are the starting five. But with Senga set to open the season on the injured list, Tylor Megill, Jose Butto and Joey Lucchesi are battling for a spot.
“You have Severino, if he has a good year he will be one of the top pitchers in the league,” Lindor said. “Senga, he’s not one of the tops yet, but if he has a good year this year he will put himself as one of the tops. Houser, he’s not one of the tops, but he can put himself in the top 20 if he has a good year. Quintana, he can be back to being one of the top 20 pitchers in the league.”
In other words, it’s a rotation of individuals with something to prove.
“I feel like they are pitchers that have been in that [top] category or they are fighting to get into that category of elites,” Lindor said. “If they go out and get it done they will put themselves in it, and it’s special.”
Nimmo is a team leader: Lindor himself is viewed as a leader within the Mets’ clubhouse, but Nimmo has been maybe the most visible this spring, organizing a family PopStroke golf outing two weeks ago that served as a team bonding event.
“Since I was here the first year [Nimmo] has always been one of the players that has been looked up to as a leader,” Lindor said. “He just had players that came up before him … and he might not have believed he’s one of the leaders, but he’s always in my eyes been one of the players that has a good handle of things. I’m happy for him, because he is in a position where he feels that he can handle anything.”
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