The New York Mets have officially introduced Carlos Mendoza as their new manager. Mendoza, 43, previously served as the bench coach for the crosstown Yankees for the last four seasons. He is taking over for ousted manager Buck Showalter in the Mets’ dugout. Although Mendoza has not managed at the major-league level before, he did manage at multiple levels of the Yankees’ farm system over a decade ago.
Under Showalter, the Mets did not meet expectations in 2023, finishing with an 87-loss season despite having the highest team payroll in MLB history. Despite such an expensive failure, Mendoza stated during his introductory press conference, “We expect to compete in 2024.”
Mendoza pointed out, “There’s some talented players coming back to a team that won 100 games.” The Mets achieved 101 wins in 2022 but lost the division title through a tiebreaker to the Braves. Key contributors from the 2022 team, such as Pete Alonso, Francisco Lindor, Brandon Nimmo, and Jeff McNeil, are still with the Mets. In addition, lockdown closer Edwin Díaz is expected to return from a knee injury that kept him out of the entire 2023 season. Cohen and new president of baseball operations David Stearns are also expected to be active in the 2023-24 free-agent market.
“I’ve experienced playoff games here in October on the other side of town, and I can’t wait to have that experience in Citi Field,” Mendoza said.
In addition, Mendoza confirmed that pitching coach Jeremy Hefner will return for the 2024 season during his introductory remarks on Tuesday. Mendoza also emphasized the importance of blending analytics and traditional scouting methods in player evaluation, a fundamental requirement for big-league managers today. In conclusion, Mendoza summarized his opportunity, approach, and objectives, stating, “It’s about connecting, it’s about building relationships, it’s about winning championships.”
All of Mendoza’s qualities and aspects are in service of the ultimate goal, and his tenure will be judged by that standard. His initial comments as Mets manager show that he understands and accepts that responsibility.
