You Bet’ Dellin feels he has much to prove to Mets
Dellin Betances is not the reliever he once was, when he consistently avoided injuries and put up All-Star numbers for the Yankees from 2014-18. In the past two years alone he’s struggled with Achilles, shoulder and lat injuries that significantly impacted his velocity and overall performance on the mound.
Really, Mets fans haven’t even seen a flash of the dominant Betances that brought down the house in the Bronx. This season, as Betances said he feels “tremendously better” than last year when he was still recovering from a partial tear of his left Achilles, he feels like he has something to prove to the Queens faithful.
“For me, last year was a disappointing year,” Betances said Wednesday in his first press conference of the year. “Obviously, I wasn’t healthy and it was a short season and a weird year for sure. For me, yes, I definitely have something to prove. This is pretty much a brand-new team and I haven’t been able to pitch in front of the Mets fans at home. It’s something I’m looking forward to and I’m excited.”
Betances, 32, pitched in 15 games for the Mets in 2020’s shortened pandemic season with no fans in the stands. Mostly appearing in the seventh and eighth innings, he labored through his outings before missing almost all of September with another lat issue. From 2019 with the Yankees to 2020 with the Mets, Betances has recorded a 7.30 ERA in 16 games and 12.1 innings. In his career, he has a 2.52 ERA and 1.073 WHIP since 2011.
“I want to win the fan base over,” Betances said, as he enters his second year on the Mets. “I was able to do that with the Yankees, but I haven’t done it here. Nothing with the Mets. So for me, I have to win the fan base over and just do my job. That’s the ultimate thing for me.”
Betances can’t promise his
typical high 90s velocity will return to how powerful it was in the Bronx. He said “it’s tough to say” whether his fastball can hit that mark. But his new biomechanics work in the offseason is giving Betances hope that he can still be effective – even if he’s not striking guys out with 99 mph heaters. So now he’s focused on his fastball command, which was cutting too much last season.
So far in camp, Betances has thrown two bullpen sessions. The real test for his fastball command and carry will be on Friday when he’s scheduled to pitch a live batting practice session. He’s looking for swings and misses this week to prove that his offseason work has blended into spring training.
When Betances is at his best, he’s a workhorse and innings-eater. Over five seasons from 2014-18, the right-hander averaged 68 relief appearances and 73 innings per every 162 games. The Washington Heights native will try to return to that production this year.
“I worked really hard this offseason to make sure I can throw a lot of innings this year,” he said. “For me, hopefully, I want to do some of the stuff that I did early on in my career. I’m gonna try my best to get ready in spring training throwing. If I have to throw multiple innings, I’ll be willing to do that. I just want to help the team out in whatever I can do.”
DOM ARRIVES
Dominic Smith reported to Mets camp on Wednesday after missing the first two days for undisclosed, non-injury-related reasons. Smith’s teammates were thrilled to see him, and the first baseman/outfielder donned a constant smile on his first day at Clover Park.
Everywhere Smith went, there was a party. At one point during batting practice with a group of Smith, J.D. Davis and Brandon Nimmo taking hacks, Smith launched a home run, dropped his bat, put his arms at his sides and pretended to fly around the field as his teammates cackled with laughter. Manager Luis Rojas didn’t even have to turn around to know what field Smith was on because of all
Domingo German began his first public appearance with the Yankees since his suspension under MLB’s domestic violence policy with an apology. “To the Steinbrenner family, my teammates, the front office,” he began in a statement translated by
Marlon Abreu, before saying, “those around me who love me,” the pitcher’s closest allusion to his girlfriend. German’s statement grieved the incidental consequences of his behavior towards his girlfriend suffered by his teammates and employers, including the administrative leave and lengthy suspension that cost him consecutive playoff runs.
German promised he would improve his conduct on social media after the 28-year-old’s vague and cryptic Instagram posts led his teammates to question if he was retiring from baseball on multiple occasions. And he committed to setting an example for his younger teammates so they “understand the great damage that can be done when mistakes like mine have been made.”
On occasion, the media on German’s Zoom call pressed him for specifics, either about the incident between German and his girlfriend — which reportedly included striking her at a charity function before an altercation between the two at their apartment provoked her to call a teammate’s wife for help. The right-hander declined to revisit the night and didn’t share much in the way of tangible change, but German mentioned “mandatory counseling” that he told reporters was not substance-related, “a small period of rehabilitation” and regular conversations with his girlfriend.
“We’ve talked about it a lot, many, many, many times,” said German. According to the righthander, both he and his girlfriend are committed to “communicating and understanding each other in a
better way.”
The tone German set from the outset was team-focused, down to the solutions for the next time around.
“I have a lot of teammates here that have expressed how I can come to them. If I ever find myself in a tough situation...,” which presumably involves nights where German is on the verge of escalating domestic problems into domestic violence “...if I ever need to ask any anyone for some help... they have expressed that (they are available for) me.”
Among the players Yankees media relations representatives made available on the video call to discuss the elephant in the room, all said they were supportive of German. But at times, that support was conditional, and the terms of the conditionality were blunt. “I don’t condone any of the things he did,” said Luke Voit. “He’s getting a second chance at this. And we have his back, but he’s skating on thin ice and he needs to get his life together.”
The Yankees first baseman also said he was hopeful German was changing. “I want German to get better. He’s my teammate, obviously, he’s a friend. We want him to get better.”
Giancarlo Stanton said German was “very smart” to address the team face to face “just to get it in the room and move forward from here,” and said he believes German understood the severity of his mistake.
“At the same time,” Stanton added, “What are you gonna do with that mistake?”
“You’re going to improve and look to improve to make everyone around you better and prove yourself? You can show that and he looks determined to do so. So now it’s just giving him the chance to show that.”
Throughout, German reiterated his desire to prove himself on the field. “What I want to do now is concentrate on what I love, which is to pitch,” German said. “My goal is to work hard and retake my career.”
Whether German has improved how he handles relationships is to be determined. But German’s fellow Yankees are watching, and if he needs to apologize again, it may be too late.