Noah and Met arms want Warthen back

the 2011 home opener against the Nationals filled him with excitement after a 12-year MLB hiatus.

But the whirlwind of Game 5 of the Fall Classic, which the Mets lost in 12 innings after blowing a 2-0 lead in the ninth, will stick with Collins as the night his most successful season came to a crushing end in front of the home crowd.

“Obviously, Game 5 will be with me forever,” he said. “The frustration, the tremendous excitement that was in the air here.”

Collins said he doesn’t expect to retire after the season, telling NorthJersey.com he’s “going to be somewhere.”

The Mets, who are also looking to replace pitching coach Dan Warthen, said they will announce Collins’ future after the season.

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Jose Reyes, whose future with the Mets is also in doubt, said that no matter where he and Collins end up next season, the manager will always have a special place in his heart.

“He’s like my second father,” Reyes said of Collins. “That’s how much love I have for him and he has for me. The communication that he had with me since 2011 when I met him, it’s unbelievable. I don’t know what the future holds but I wish the best for him.”

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Noah Syndergaard threw a bullpen after returning to the mound Saturday with one shutout inning against the Nats.

The righty is expected to pitch in Philadelphia this weekend but is unsure whether he’ll throw more than the five pitches he tossed in his first game back.

Noah Syndergaard said he was shocked Wednesday morning. The righthander, who missed most of the season with a torn lat, had not realized that behind the scenes there were people trying to push out pitching coach Dan Warthen. And he wasn’t happy to see that the only pitching coach he has known in the big leagues will likely not be back in 2018.

“Everything I have become from 2015 to now is thanks to Dan,” Syndergaard said before the final Citi Field game of the 2017 season. “He’s helped me become a big league pitcher. I know we’ve had a disappointing season here. I know the pitching has struggled.

“But Dan Warthen is part of the solution. Dan’s not the problem.”

Warthen, however, may be one of the distractions as the Mets try to change the topic from a disappointing 2017 to hope for 2018. He won’t be alone.

It’s likely manager Terry Collins will be another one sacrificed for a season that was torpedoed by injuries and a poorly constructed roster. Highly respected hitting coach Kevin Long has been mentioned as a darkhorse for the manager’s job. He has also indicated he may not stay on in his current position after his contract expires at the end of this season. Dick Scott, in his second year as the Mets bench coach, is reportedly also a consideration for Collins’ job.

Assistant hitting coach Pat Roessler is also exploring his options for next season. Bullpen coach Ricky Bones, who is among those the Mets are considering as a replacement for Warthen, is uncertain about his future in the organization.

With so much uncertainty heading into the final weekend of the 2017 season, there will obviously be some different faces around when the Mets reconvene next spring in Port St. Lucie.

But will cosmetic changes really make a difference in 2018?

As Syndergaard pointed out, Warthen cannot be blamed for the pitching issues this season without acknowledging that he groomed all of them into an elite staff in 2015-16. Collins cannot be held accountable for a team that had the third most injury-impact to a team in the big leagues, according to mangameslost.com without pointing out that he kept a 2016 team devastated by injuries in the hunt for a playoff spot. Or the fact that two years ago they both guided the Mets to the World Series.

Injuries killed this season and that is not addressed by axing the pitching coach and manager.

General Manager Sandy Alderson is expected to be back next season running the team with assistant general manager John Ricco, who was promoted in January to Senior Vice President, taking on more responsibility for the baseball operations. They are reconfiguring the front office a bit with the departure of their former baseball operations director, but will likely maintain a similar structure, philosophy and approach.

Alderson and Ricco both said recently that while they will do an internal review of their medical and training staff and procedures, they are not planning to change their training or strength and conditioning staff for next year.

That includes Alderson doubling down on the controversial strength and conditioning consultant Mike Barwis. He was brought in after the 2014 season as an attempt to preemptively cut down on injuries.

The injuries were particularly devastating to the pitching staff.

They had every starter except deGrom on the disabled list, including Syndergaard, out from May 1 until Sept. 23. Zack Wheeler and Steven Matz were shut down for the season last month and Matt Harvey has been unable to find his way back from June 2016 Thoracic Outlet Syndrome surgery this season. The numbers reflect that mess. The Mets staff went into Wednesday’s Citi Field season finale with the third worst ERA in the majors (5.01) and second worst WHIP (1.49). They have allowed the fourth most walks (579) in the big leagues and the second worst batting average against (.274) in the big leagues.

Warthen, who had considered retiring at the end of this season, wants to be back in 2018 to see his “kids,” turn things around. Wednesday, Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey and Jeurys Familia each said they “love” working with Warthen and want to continue doing so.

“I want to keep working with him,” deGrom said. “I don’t see a reason to change that.”