Spring Training Day 6: Professionalism, Competition and a 2026 Mets Team that Might Be Special

By the time I pulled into the complex at Clover Park for my sixth and final day of covering Mets Spring Training, the place felt almost civilized. No 6:00 a.m. cattle call. No players stumbling in before sunrise for picture day obligations. The press room didn’t open until 9:45. The clubhouse doors welcomed us at 10. It felt like baseball had hit the snooze button.

And honestly, after a week of controlled chaos, it was kind of perfect.

The room itself was quiet. Not tense quiet. Not awkward quiet. Just the calm of a camp that has settled into its rhythms. I had already spoken to most of the room earlier in the week, so instead of hunting lockers, I found myself wandering, which is how Spring Training is best experienced anyway. It’s a little yin and yang. Half scouting report, half sociology experiment.

I caught up with Brett Baty, who continues to embrace the Swiss Army Knife portion of his job description. Watching him prepare to add the outfield to his defensive résumé, I asked whether he drew inspiration from watching Jeff McNeil bounce all over the diamond.

“Oh yeah, definitely looked up to him in that way,” Baty told me. “I thought it was very, very cool that he could do that and very cool that he could bounce around and play so many different defensive positions very well too. So I definitely have chatted with him about it and I thought it was really cool that he was able to do that.”

He’s already handled second base. First base work is underway. The outfield is next. I asked which transition has been toughest.

“I’ve only just started doing work at first base,” he said. “I haven’t even really gotten to do like footwork stuff. We’ve done cutoffs and relays over there. I think the most challenging thing… was cutoffs and relays at second base. Because in the outfield, you should go get the ball, back up, and you throw it in. Second base, you’ve got to know exactly where to go on cutoffs and relays and stuff like that.”

There’s a lightness to how he approaches it. They even turn some drills into competitions with specialized mitts. “I think it just keeps it fun,” he said. “Just goofing around with the guys but also getting some good work done. I think we’ve got a great group of guys in here and we all challenge and push each other. And we have fun being around each other.”

When I mentioned veterans like Bo Bichette, Marcus Semien and Jorge Polanco changing positions for the betterment of the team, Baty didn’t hesitate. “It’s huge,” he said. “Team sacrifice is the name of the game and I love that. You can’t have an ego if you want to do that… it’s all about winning at this level. So anything we can do to get the job done to win.”

He paused and added the part that matters most. “If you go 0-for-4, you feel bad about your personal performance. But if you get the dub, you’re celebrating with the team. So I think it’s all about winning at this level.”

And that theme kept coming up all week.

After the clubhouse thinned out, I wandered to the back fields and ran into Kevin Kernan, which in baseball writer terms is like finding a Hall of Fame exhibit that talks back. Kevin has been covering this game for more than four decades, spent over two decades as a columnist at the New York Post before moving to BallNine, earned induction into the New York State Baseball Hall of Fame, hosted sports talk radio, appeared on national television including ESPN’s “First Take,” written multiple books and once conducted his very first baseball interview with Thurman Munson. He even popped up in ESPN’s documentary series on Michael Jordan, the episode featuring Dennis Rodman. If baseball had a frequent flyer program, Kevin would have lifetime platinum status.

Talking ball with him is like sitting in the dugout of history.

From there I made a quick detour to the minor league side to see Josh Blum. As a Maccabi coach, I’ll admit I was looking forward to this one. Blum played Maccabi ball and is set to represent Team Israel in the World Baseball Classic. That’s not just a nice bullet point. That’s personal.

He walked me through his path, starting with Emory-Weiner School, where his siblings had gone before him and where a state championship program helped shape his game. Without that foundation, he believes USC never happens. And USC, he said, “was a dream come true. It was awesome. Could not have picked a better school. I had a great time there.”

His pro career began in St. Lucie and quickly moved to Brooklyn. To this point he’s undefeated as a professional. “Couldn’t have done it without my teammates,” he said. “Still 60 feet, 6 inches. Just keep focus on my pitch-to-pitch process and attacking hitters.”

When I asked about playing for Israel, his voice changed just slightly, the way it does when something hits home. “I think it’s awesome. I think it’s very important to me, to my family. It’s something I’ve worked for for a long time. It’ll be cool to… show them how Israeli baseball players play.”

As a Maccabi coach, hearing that never gets old.

Then I sprinted back to the main field because Nolan McLean was throwing live BP, and what unfolded between him and Juan Soto felt less like February and more like October. The final at-bat lasted nearly two minutes. Neither blinked.

“That was a battle within itself,” McLean told me later. “But it’s good to get out there in February and be able to compete and feel healthy.”

On facing Soto, he smiled. “We’re both competitors, and we want to win every time we’re on the mound or in the box. It’s good to face guys like that this early in camp. He’s one of the best hitters on the planet.”

Soto even offered him feedback afterward. “He was just like, man, I was waiting on some kind of spin, and you never threw it to me,” McLean said. “I guess playing a little bit of mind games with him, but it was a lot of fun.”

When I asked Carlos Mendoza about the at-bat, he lit up. “It’s special,” he said. “You’ve got a hitter like Juan, and then you’ve got Nolan up there. You just see the ability. That’s what good elite players do. And you saw it right there.”

Later, when the clubhouse reopened, I caught up with Reed Garrett, who is grinding through rehab with the kind of perspective you only gain the hard way.

“You can either let it eat you alive,” Garrett said, “or you can take it as an opportunity… I know the things that I know work in the major leagues, and I know there’s things that I need to work on.”

He admitted he went through the why-me phase last year. “I’m not the first person to have problems… I’m not going to be the last one. So I’m just trying to take full advantage of positivity.”

He’s attacking rehab the same way he attacks hitters. “You can either just get healthier or you can get better,” he said. “And I’m trying to get better.”

When I brought up the McLean-Soto duel and the edge in camp, Garrett didn’t hesitate. “Where we are right now with the group that we have here is special,” he said. “I think we’re all pulling on the same rope… if we’re all pushing each other to be the best that we can be, then we’re going to be better as a group.”

That’s the word that sticks with me as I leave Port St. Lucie.

Professional.

This is one of the most professional groups I’ve been around covering this team. Yes, every clubhouse in February talks about winning. It’s practically printed on the sunflower seed bags. But this feels different. Bichette. Semien. Polanco. These are accomplished players changing positions without flinching. They’re all shortstops at heart, which as Carlos Beltrán reminded me, usually means they’re the best athletes on the field.

Will there be a learning curve? Of course. Will there be moments when it’s messy? Absolutely. But there will also be web gems. And if a 36-year-old Ed Charles could handle third base in 1969, I think this group will survive a few March hiccups.

Offensively, I did not see one bad swing all week. Not one of those flailing-at-the-outside-curve episodes that had us reaching for antacids last season. This lineup looks like it will string together quality at-bats. This lineup looks like it will be dangerous with men in scoring position.

And here’s my bold one before boarding the plane. As much credit as David Stearns received for his Christian Yelich deal in Milwaukee, I believe the acquisition of Luis Robert Jr. will wind up being the best trade the Mets have ever made. I think he’s headed for a superstar season. Maybe the best on the roster.

On the mound, there is quality. But more importantly, there is quantity. In years past, losing a starter like Kodai Senga would have sent the depth chart into therapy. Now, with Christian Scott and Jonah Tong pushing from below, the Mets might actually have enough pitching. Yes, I said it. Somewhere, an old baseball proverb just fainted.

And the starting rotation itself has a chance to be very special. Freddy Peralta brings swing-and-miss stuff that can dominate a lineup three times through. Nolan McLean has electric ability and a competitive edge that shows up even in February live BP sessions. Clay Holmes adds power and experience. Senga, when right, can make hitters look like they’re swinging at ghosts. David Peterson quietly just keeps taking the ball and competing. And if Sean Manaea can replicate his 2024 arm slot this staff can be one of the leagues best.

There’s top-end talent here. There’s depth behind it. And for the first time in a while, there’s the feeling that if adversity hits, this staff won’t blink.

The bullpen is the one area I’m still squinting at a bit, but there are intriguing pieces here—real ones. Luke Weaver brings versatility and swing-and-miss ability. Tobias Meyers, who may one day go down as the best “throw-in” trade piece ever, just keeps getting outs. Devon Williams has that late-inning presence and the kind of stuff that shortens games. Huascar Brazobán’s arm plays anywhere, Brooks Raley knows how to navigate the big moment, Luis Garcia gives you experience and power, and Craig Kimbrel… well, ninth innings have been his office for a long time.

And it doesn’t stop there. Waiting in the minors are reinforcements like Carl Edwards Jr., Alex Carrillo, and a handful of young flamethrowers who treat radar guns like personal challenges. So while I may still be adjusting my meta glasses trying to get a perfect read on this bullpen, there’s depth, there’s upside, and above all, there’s competition everywhere.

That’s what I leave with.

Competition. Professionalism. And a clubhouse that genuinely seems to care about one thing.

Winning.

Which, in the end, is what Spring Training is always about.

As I head out of Port St. Lucie with a suitcase full of sunscreen and optimism, remember this is just the appetizer. The full locker room interviews from the entire week are up now — Brett Baty, Nolan McLean, Reed Garrett, Josh Blum and more — and the compete level and personality of this group really jump when you hear the full conversations. Click here and dive into all of it.

And don’t just read and run. Join the conversation in our Facebook group. Mets fans were not built for silence. Bring your predictions, your questions, your hot takes. Spring is about belief. Let’s debate it together.