Mets set Julio Teheran's first start with club for Monday at Atlanta
FILE -Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Julio Teheran delivers to an Atlanta Braves batter during the first inning of a baseball game Saturday, July 29, 2023, in Atlanta. The New York Mets have agreed to a contract with veteran starter Julio Teheran, according to a person familiar with the deal. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Wednesday, April 3, 2024 because no announcement had been made. Credit: AP/John Bazemore
CINCINNATI — In sudden need of starting pitcher help, the Mets are turning to one of their former tormentors.
They made official Friday their one-year contract with righthander Julio Teheran, who in effect replaces Tylor Megill (strained right shoulder) in the rotation. He is scheduled to start Monday when the Mets open a four-game series against Atlanta.
It was with Atlanta, of course, that Teheran made his name last decade as a two-time All-Star and six-time Opening Day starter. His lifetime marks against the Mets: 3.24 ERA, 1.18 WHIP in about a season’s worth of games/innings.
“It feels weird,” Teheran, 33, said. “I haven’t realized I’m on this side now, but that’s the game. Now that I’m wearing the Mets uniform, I’m happy.”
Tehran pitched in just one game in the majors in 2021-22 but made it back last season for 14 appearances (11 starts) with the Brewers — doing so as basically a whole new pitcher.
“I’ve been hearing that a lot from the guys,” he said. “I was facing [Jean] Segura and even [Yuli] Gurriel down in Miami and they said this is nothing like it was when they faced me before. They said these are new pitches, everything is new. They didn’t know I had that kind of movement on all my pitches.”
Specifically, Teheran explained, his slider is more like a cutter, his two-seam fastball moves more and he added a new changeup.
That worked for him in spring training, when he was with the Orioles. But when they didn’t add him to the roster, he opted out of his contract about two weeks ago. He stayed active at home in Miami until the Mets — the runner-up when he agreed with Baltimore in February — came calling.
The Mets’ desire for Teheran is a testament to how quickly pitching depth can evaporate. They spent all of camp talking up their rotation options, but now the first wave is almost all gone: Megill, Max Kranick (injured), David Peterson (surgery in November), Joey Lucchesi (rough preseason) and Jose Butto (spot start Thursday in the majors).
Teheran should be good for 70-75 pitches Monday, manager Carlos Mendoza said. And he was available out of the bullpen Friday against the Reds.
“This is a guy that’s been in the league for a long time,” Mendoza said. “Right now we’re in a situation where we’re down a couple of starters and he provides that. Not only as a starter, but this is a guy who can come out of the bullpen. He’s going to get an opportunity here pretty soon.”
The Mets designated righthander Michael Tonkin for assignment to clear roster room for Teheran. Tonkin won a bullpen spot during spring training but was on the mound for consecutive extra-innings losses this week, allowing eight runs (two earned) in four innings in a week.
Martinez gets closer
J.D. Martinez played with Low-A St. Lucie on Friday and will do so again Saturday, his first true in-game reps during his abbreviated, personalized spring training.
Mendoza said the Mets will wait to see how Martinez feels afterward before deciding the next steps. But he’ll probably have Sunday off, according to the manager, and he could join the Mets as soon as Monday.
They don’t want to rush him, though. Martinez signed March 23.
“If he needs more at-bats, we’ll have those discussions,” Mendoza said. “It’s been a pretty quick ramp-up for him. The last thing we want is to rush this guy and put him in a difficult situation. Still fluid. We’re having those conversations with him. We want him to be honest and he’s going to let us know.”
Nimmo rests tight hamstring
Brandon Nimmo said he expects to return to the Mets’ lineup Saturday after sitting out Friday with a tight right hamstring.
That issue popped up Thursday, in the first inning of the Mets’ second game of a doubleheader, but he played through it because he was the DH.
“He came in today feeling a lot better than we anticipated,” Mendoza said.
Nimmo added: “We’re just being safe with it.”
Extra bases
Days after his first career start as the cleanup hitter, Francisco Alvarez was slotted into the No. 3 spot in the lineup for the first time. Brett Baty batted fourth for the first time . . . When Alexis Diaz received the Reds’ 2023 outstanding pitcher award during an on-field pregame ceremony, a special guest joined him: Mets closer Edwin Diaz, his brother.
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
