Even after ugly 0-5 start, Mendoza managed to stay calm

The Mets opened the season 0-5 and to some, the sky was falling, according to Brooks Raley.

“People were talking about 1960-something and how long we could go without winning a game,” the reliever said Monday.

But at least one person didn’t panic, Raley added: rookie manager Carlos Mendoza.

“It’s tough for a first-time manager to have an 0-5 start,” Raley said. “We all wanted to see how he would react. Who wasn’t looking at that? Especially as players, we want to see who you are when you fail. It was a great test and he passed it.”

Mendoza said the thought of a team meeting crossed his mind, but it’s not something he wants to do, preferring “one-on-one” conversations or addressing players at regularly-scheduled hitters or pitchers meetings.

“I’m pretty sure there will be times I’ll get the team together and say something,” Mendoza said. “But I didn’t feel after five games it was the right time.”

The low-key approach seems to have paid off, for now, anyway.

After that miserable beginning to his managerial career, Mendoza and the Mets won eight of their next 11 games, three consecutive series and got back to .500 after Monday’s 6-3 win over the Pirates.

Mendoza, the longtime Yankees coach, remained calm — at least on the outside and it served him well.

“Every team goes through stretches where it’s gonna be hard and out of the gate, we were dealing with some adversity,” Mendoza said. “We have a lot of experienced guys that have been here and been in this league for a long time. They know what it takes. It’s a long season. You have to stay consistent, make sure you prepare and go out and compete. It’s good to see the guys bouncing back quickly.”

Asked about his managerial style at this early point in his tenure, several players pointed to Mendoza’s communication skills.

“For me, he’s been the same guy from when we were with the Yankees,” Luis Severino said. “Knowing him from there, I knew he liked communication with the players, making sure you were OK, and also the same thing with everyone, from coaches and trainers, too.”

As for his on-field strategy, Mendoza opened some eyes by sticking with the righthanded Harrison Bader with the bases loaded and two outs Sunday against Kansas City right-hander Chris Stratton and lefty-swinging DJ Stewart available on the bench.

“The matchup, on paper, it’s probably an easy decision to shoot the lefty there with Stewart,” Mendoza said. “But for me, in that situation, bases loaded, two out and a guy who throws a 93 mph two-seam [fastball], I’ll take my chances with Bader putting the ball in play.”

With less than two out, Mendoza said, he probably would have made a different decision. Bader, who also had the go-ahead hit on Monday, rewarded Mendoza’s confidence with a dribbler to third that turned into an RBI single for the game’s first run.

“With where we were [Sunday],” Mendoza said, “not all the time is it gonna work and it might be a different story today. ”