Mets Morning News: Play Ball! (Finally)

Meet the Mets

The Mets played an intra-squad game yesterday in anticipation of their spring training opener today, and the hitters put on a power display.

New York City will reportedly be keeping its private sector vaccine mandate in place, meaning that any players on the Mets or Yankees who are not vaccinated would not be eligible to play home games.

Francisco Lindor—who has been vaccinated—shared his thoughts about the mandate that may keep some of his teammates off the field.

Dominic Smith acknowledged that he was playing hurt for a good portion of last season, and he feels confident that better health will bring better results.

Eduardo Escobar has been a positive new presence in the Mets clubhouse.

Mark Canha spoke about the noticeably larger amount of staff the Mets have employed compared to the Athletics.

The Mets made an early cut to their roster, optioning Jordan Yamamoto to the minor-league camp.

Around the National League East

The Braves added a major piece to their bullpen by signing longtime Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen to a one-year, $16 million deal.

There will be a lot of drives into deep left field at Citizens Bank Park in the future, as the Phillies signed Nick Castellanos to a five-year, $100 million contract.

The Nationals are beginning to sort out which roles each player will be filling this season as spring training games begin.

Patrick Corbin, who had a 5.82 ERA in 31 starts last season, might be starting on opening day for Washington.

The Marlins are still hoping to add an impact bat to their lineup before the season begins.

Around Major League Baseball

The Twins have landed one of the top free agents of the offseason, signing Carlos Correa to a three-year, $105.3MM contract with opt-out clauses after the first and second years.

Trevor Story, one of the last big free agents left on the market, may finally be nearing a decision.

After re-signing Anthony Rizzo to play first base, the Yankees sent Luke Voit to the Padres in exchange for pitching prospect Justin Lange.

The Dodgers added another starting pitching option, signing Tyler Anderson to a one-year, $8 million deal.

The Tigers also bolstered their starting rotation by signing Michael Pineda to a one-year, $5.5 million deal.

Old friend Hansel Robles will continue pointing to the Boston sky after re-signing with the Red Sox.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Lukas Vlahos argued that the Mets should look to trade Dominic Smith as one of their final moves of the offseason.

This Date in Mets History

The late Richie Ashburn, who had the first plate appearance in franchise history, was born on this date in 1927.