Reese Kaplan -- Misusing Spring Training to Prep Veterans

I’ve had the pleasure once in my life to attend a Spring Training game at Port St. Lucie on what turned out to be a surprisingly cold night.  As a NYC area resident at the time, everyone assumed that the Florida weather was going to be agreeably balmy in February, but it turned out to be much more wintery than we had planned.

Being that it was a game which represents more of the latter stages of the pre-season, it was almost like being in a regular MLB contest.  The lineups were normal.  The play was predictable with perhaps a little less intensity to win games.  There were a number of “Who?” reactions when seeing various unknown names on jerseys, but the game itself was likely not the best way to ascertain who would prosper and who might have to start thinking about playing in alternate leagues or even other countries.  

What I didn’t get to enjoy was the actually preparatory phase of Spring Training.  Yes, like swimming or running laps, there are a great many exercises that are not necessarily the most exciting aspect of baseball.  Sometimes we forget that baseball players, despite a great many “something's odd about him” physiques, are truly athletes and workouts are a normal part of mandatory in-season preparation.  

So no matter how many traditional exercises are done, what fans and media types really want to see are the replications of in-game activities which help you determine who is trying hard, who is struggling and who is really going through the motions.  For a great many players, the categorization has to do with major league heritage or minor league draft position more than personal workout integrity.  It always seems that the high draft choices and the veteran regulars get a great many more chances to ply their trade.  Consequently, sometimes it seems as if they don’t work nearly as hard.

By contrast, you have some younger ballplayers who are perhaps getting their first taste of the top competition caliber the game has to offer and they can open your eyes quite a bit with their hard work, defensive prowess, working the counts, running the bases and doing that myriad of little things that tell you, “this guy may be something special!”  Last year’s first serious glimpses of Andres Gimenez suggested this type of reaction and a rookie manager was willing to push aside a veteran player who was doing well with the bat and on the bases to make room for Gimenez to show what he could do.  In retrospect, it’s kind of ironic both Gimenez and Amed Rosario was shipped off together to play in the land of Rock & Roll Hall of Fame while their shortstop and highly credible pitcher made their way to Queens.  

To some extent you would think that the Spring Training period is when established regulars like Michael Conforto and Jeff McNeil should do all of the pre-game workouts they need, but really shouldn’t take innings away from others trying to prove they belong in the majors.  That is, after all, why pre-season baseball exists.  Everyone knows what the stars can do, but no one can commit to how successful a Kahlil Lee or a Patrick Mazeika could be when trying to hit the best of the best when it comes to pitching.  

Speaking of arms, interim GM Zack Scott was pretty explicit about the never ending need to find good pitching.  The same theory applies here to guys like Carlos Carrasco, Marcus Stroman and Jacob deGrom.  You know what you’re going to get with them, so see that they go through the motions of preparation, but reserved a sufficient number of innings for the unknowns trying to make your roster.  Do you know who in the latter end of the pack is actually capable of being a solid hurler when the game is on the line?  No one can guess how good a Drew Smith, a Daniel Zamora, a Joey Lucchesi or a Jordan Yamamoto can be unless they are thrown into the mix against other clubs’ best hitters.  

Granted, everyone would feel significantly better if the Mets landed well established players to fortify their bench and their pitching vacancies, but that solution doesn’t always work either.  Remember Michael Wacha and Rick Porcello?  Remember Edwin Diaz’s first year here?  Remember Jed Lowrie?  Remember Billy Hamilton?  Remember Terry Collins’ love affair with James Loney? 

To me, the best and most exciting thing you can get out of a Spring Training is the unknown hero who was formerly not highly regarded in the minors or whose role was that of a substitute player who, when given the opportunity, showed how good they could really be.  Of course, the books are just as full of hot prospects who turned out to be better Uber drivers than baseball players, but when you have someone who kicks it into high gear unexpectedly, that’s the game at its best.  No one foresaw a shortstop would turn into a multi-time Cy Young Award winner just as no one could predict when a singles hitter like Justin Turner could turn into a regular All Star.  

Right now I’m just anxious for the voice of the man in blue yelling, “Play Ball!”