Breaking: 3 Mets players failing miserably after two weeks of spring training
It has been a rough spring for these three players who were on the 2023 Mets.
Now more than two weeks into spring training action, there’s a better feel of who is ready for the regular season to begin and who might need a little more time. The New York Mets don’t have a whole lot of roster competition going on. Elsewhere, battles are raging and several former Mets players are performing so badly they shouldn’t even be a consideration for their club’s Opening Day rosters.
Spring training may be young but these three Mets from last year’s squad are already proving they should be in the minor leagues to start 2024.
1) Eduardo Escobar
Eduardo Escobar signed a minor league deal with the Toronto Blue Jays this offseason. It’s not looking good for him. In an organization that also managed to sign Daniel Vogelbach and Joey Votto to minor league deals as well, the only advantage Escobar had going for him was the ability to play more than first base.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like Escobar will crack Toronto’s Opening Day roster. Escobar is 2 for 20 this spring with both of those hits coming in each of his last two games. Seeing the competition grow with more minor league signings by the Blue Jays might’ve given him the kick he needed. Of the 18 at-bats where he was retired, 9 came via strikeout. Is Escobar rusty or has he reached the twilight of his career
Escobar’s time with the Mets ended in late June when he was traded to the Los Angeles Angels for two prospects. The Angels didn’t see enough from him to even consider picking up the 2024 option on his deal. The Blue Jays knew more of what they were getting themselves into and with third base insecure, Escobar would be wise to stick around if he has a choice in the matter.
2) John Curtiss
A seemingly savvy pickup by the Mets prior to the 2022 season, John Curtiss spent all of year one with the orange and blue rehabbing from Tommy John Surgery. This was a planned attack by Billy Eppler to bring the team an optional reliever for the following season. Curtiss would turn out to be an ineffective occasional member of the Mets bullpen in 2023.
Curtiss appeared in 15 games and a total of 19.2 innings. The 4.58 ERA turned out to be far better than anything he’d do in Syracuse. While in Triple-A, Curtiss didn’t make any plea for a big league promotion. He had a 7.17 ERA in his 21.1 frames in the minor leagues.
Now a member of the Colorado Rockies this spring, Curtiss is already pitching like he’s at Coors Field. An earned run has scored against him in every appearance including his most recent outing when he recorded a save. While the 2.1 innings of work is a small sample size, getting lashed for 7 earned runs against him isn’t the kind of good first impression any pitcher would like to make.
Curtiss is on a minor league deal with Colorado and the spring training performance confirms why there weren’t any MLB offers out there
3) Adam Kolarek
It’s almost like Adam Kolarek was never really here. Acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers alongside Phil Bickford at last year’s trade deadline, Kolarek would appear in only 4.2 scoreless innings for the Mets. Surprisingly, he didn’t give up any runs at all in the majors last year albeit in only 6 total innings of work.
Kolarek found himself lucking out with a $900K contract from the Los Angeles Angels. Certainly affordable even for an ownership looking to cut back, Kolarek hasn’t justified any sort of major league deal.
Through 3.2 innings, Kolarek has surrendered 7 earned runs. He has yet to make it through any of his four appearances without someone crossing the plate. Three batters have already been hit by him including two in his most recent and least effective appearance of all. Kolarek didn’t allow any hits and was still charged with 3 earned runs against him in a whacky ninth that also included a wild pitch and a substitution with two outs.
The Angels have had an unimpressive offseason up until this point with a few pricy relief pitcher signings highlighting the better moves they did make. Kolarek doesn’t look like he’ll be one of those free agent additions fans will be gloating about.
The New York Mets and Pete Alonso Seem Unlikely to Agree on an Extension
In any case, it seems unlikely that the Mets and Alonso will agree on an extension before the July 30, 2024 trade deadline.
“By betting on himself and reaching free agency in a year, Alonso can gauge his true market value through league-wide negotiation,” Anthony DiComo pointed out for MLB.com. “The Mets, meanwhile, won’t gain much by signing Alonso now unless he’s willing to take a hometown discount.”
