Conforto now a veteran voice
The locker in the back left corner of the Mets’ clubhouse that once belonged to Curtis Granderson had already been commandeered Saturday afternoon. A phone and wallet rested in the main cubby. Khakis drooped over a hanger.
After Granderson was traded to the Dodgers late Friday night, teammates were left with no choice but to move on. The loss stung for many in the organization, but perhaps no one more so than Michael Conforto, who called the move “a punch in the gut” while commending Granderson’s mentorship in an emotional session with reporters after Friday’s loss to the Marlins.
With the Mets dealing a slew of their veteran position players in recent weeks — Jay Bruce, Neil Walker and Lucas Duda before Granderson — Conforto is all of a sudden one of the more experienced members of the Mets’ core. Terry Collins, though, doesn’t want the rising young star to focus on filling the leadership vacuum.
“I think Michael really needs to focus on just finishing the year strong,” Collins said. “There’s enough going on right now with him that he needs to go just play. We’ll worry about the leadership at another time. But he’s got to show up and go do his thing and finish strong.
“I think ultimately down the road, in the big picture, he will be a huge force in the clubhouse. But he’s got enough going on to finish the last two months the way he’s came into the last two months, and that is playing well, swinging the bat well and finishing with great numbers. And then we’ll worry about all the other outside, off-the-diamond kind of stuff later on.”
Conforto leads the Mets in homers (26) and OPS (.944). He brought home the game-winning RBI in the sixth inning of Saturday night’s 8-1 victory over the Marlins.
Collins said he relayed his point about leadership to Conforto before Saturday’s game. “Message received,” Conforto said. “We’ll let it happen naturally.”
TC ON GRANDY
At the time of Collins’ news conference Friday night, the Granderson trade was not yet final. Collins managed Granderson for the better part of four seasons, including the 2015 World Series run, and offered a glowing tribute to his former outfielder Saturday.
Granderson started in left field for the Dodgers Saturday at the Tigers, batting fifth. He went 0-for-3 with a run.
“Well we are certainly excited for him getting a chance to obviously play in the postseason. (But at the same time), very disappointed, it’s tough for us,” Collins said. “Huge piece of our team for the last four years here, and just his presence in the clubhouse — what he did on the field, obviously those numbers will follow him forever, but the impact he made with others in that clubhouse is something that’s tough to replace. He’s one of the best guys I’ve ever had around, ever been around. We’ll miss him.”
CENTER OF ATTENTION
Granderson’s departure opens the door for Juan Lagares and Brandon Nimmo to get consistent time in center field.
Nimmo, a lefty batter, started in center Saturday night against Marlins righthander Vance Worley. But Collins said Lagares, a righty, will still play against righthanders over the final 41 games of the season.
“We’re not going to platoon. He’ll get plenty of at-bats,” Collins said of Lagares. “I wanted to get Brandon in there today. … But I don’t have any schedules for playing time right now.”… Saturday was Yoenis Cespedes bobblehead night at Citi Field. …Rookie Dominic Smith connected on his first major-league hit at the Mets’ home ballpark Saturday night, a solo homer in the eighth.