New-look Mets, Francisco Lindor have good time at first full-squad workout
Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor throws during a spring training workout on Monday Feb. 22, 2021, in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Credit: Newsday/Alejandra Villa Loarca
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — On the Mets’ first day together in their new era — with new ownership, a new front office and a bunch of new players — Jeff McNeil walked into the clubhouse and was struck by the degree of change.
"A ton of new faces. I didn’t know, really, half my teammates," McNeil said, barely exaggerating after the Mets turned over nearly half of their 40-man roster in the offseason. "Definitely a little bit different feeling."
For the Mets, it is a good different. They finished with a losing record in 2020, missing the playoffs for the fourth season in a row. Now under owner Steve Cohen, president Sandy Alderson and his overhauled inner circle of executives — led by acting general manager Zack Scott — there is a different air about the organization. Call it hype, excitement, expectations, whatever. The standards are higher.
Manager Luis Rojas offered a cautiously optimistic message when he spoke to the players Monday morning before the first full-squad workout. What usually is a landmark, all-hands type of gathering instead happened via Zoom, because only so many Mets are allowed to be in one spot at the same time, per MLB’s health-and-safety protocols.
Rojas, Scott and Alderson addressed the team. After making an appearance over the weekend, Cohen wasn’t present Monday.
"We talked about how talented we are, but being cognizant of that [alone] is not going to do it," Rojas said. "We need to work hard to get to the point where we’re going to be that contender. We’re going to be the team that goes out there with that winning mentality. That started today."
Scott added: "The message was we got a good group of players and staff here and our expectation is to win a World Series. And they’re going to have all the support they could possibly have from the front office in order to do that . . . Luis wants them to have fun while we’re winning. I think it’s going to be a really exciting team to watch."
The fun indeed started Monday. During the first drill of the day — taking leads off second base — J.D. Davis made a shoestring grab in leftfield, catching the baserunners well off second. He whooped, others hollered.
The "fundamental of the day," as Rojas called it, was aggressively fielding bunts. Francisco Lindor and Michael Conforto talked hitting mechanics between rounds of batting practice. "Welcome to The Show," by country singer Cody Johnson, was perhaps the most fitting piece of the playlist blasting from speakers at the center of the four-field setup.
Lindor took ground balls with McNeil, expected to be his primary double-play partner, for the first time.
"Everybody seems nice," Lindor said. "I just want to be a piece of their puzzle."
If the Mets are to accomplish what they want, Lindor will need to be a big piece. Various Mets figures, including Rojas and Conforto, have referenced Lindor as a team leader even though he is one of the new guys.
He isn’t putting pressure on himself to fill that role explicitly. For now, Lindor is working on learning his way around — logistically and socially.
"I just go about my business the right way on a daily basis and hopefully I earn their trust, and eventually I’ll be able to say more things," he said. "I just ask questions right now, get to know them. They help me accommodate myself in the clubhouse and find the fields. Right now, I barely know where the fields are at.
"I don’t have a timetable of, oh, I gotta become the leader of the team by April, by end of March or July. I just go about my business the right way on a daily basis. Hopefully that’s good enough. If I end up being the leader of the team, it is what it is. I go out there and work as hard as I can to win."
