Wright, Strawberry among former stars set to pitch in
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — Brett Baty worked with Troy Tulowitzki over the winter and he’ll get a chance to work with another former All-star infielder in David Wright when the Mets bring their guest instructors to camp next month.
The Mets finalized their list of former greats who will return to Port St. Lucie to work with some of the organization’s rising talent. Wright will be leading off the first few days of March. Edgardo Alfonzo and Darryl Strawberry will be in camp from March 2-5, followed by Mookie Wilson and Howard Johnson from the 5-10 and Al Leiter and John Franco in late March.
Former catcher Mike Piazza will not be making his usual spring training appearance since he’s managing Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic.
The Mets want to see Baty and Mark Vientos working with Wright.
Baty said he benefitted from working with former Colorado Rockies and Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Tulowitzki and is happy to learn from anyone who can help his defense progress.
“He has a lot of good defensive things to say,” Baty said. “The biggest thing with Tulo is that he’s not going to beat around the bush with me, he’ s just going to give it to me straight up. He said I have a lot of potential and I have a lot of athleticism, but I have to clean up a few things. Like I have to move my feet more, get to balls early so I can see the hops, and also, not being so tall. I’m a taller, bigger guy, so getting into my legs a little bit more and stay down so I’ll see the ball a lot better.”
Friday scrimmage set:
Manager Buck Showalter will hold an intrasquad scrimmage Friday to prep the Mets for Grapefruit League games, which begin Saturday. Left-hander Joey Lucchesi and right-hander Dominic Hamel will face off against one another at Clover Park.
The 29-year-old Lucchesi has not pitched since 2021 with Tommy John surgery costing him the entirety of the 2022 season. He’s vying for one of the long-relief spots in the bullpen and possibly even a back-end starting spot. Left-hander David Peterson and righthander Tylor Megill are also in this group.
Regan files suit:
Former pitching coach Phil Regan is suing the Mets and former general manager Brodie Van Wagenen for age discrimination and wrongful termination. He’s also alleging harassment and a hostile work environment.
The former Detroit Tigers pitcher worked in the Mets organization from 2009-2019. He was promoted from minor league pitching coordinator to interim pitching coach after the club fired Dave Eiland on June 20, 2019. At the time, he was 82 and he alleges Van Wagenen told him he wanted to replace him with someone younger. The Mets hired Jeremy Hefner, who was 33 at the time and still remains in the same role.