Hansel Robles worked with a Hall of Fame guru and the recently released Adrian Gonzalez could be in play for the Mets.
Robles works with Pedro Martinez
The New York Mets shared a video on Twitter of relief pitcher Hansel Robles working with Hall of Famer and former Met Pedro Martinez on his pitch mechanics.
.@45PedroMartinez worked with Hansel Robles on his pitching technique in the D.R. ?? https://t.co/1gkCKXWShY pic.twitter.com/OMhUvKKIfF
— New York Mets (@Mets) December 19, 2017
Robles is coming off of a rough season, pitching to a 4.92 ERA, after having a combined 3.55 ERA in his first two seasons. He was working with Martinez specifically on his arm action coming out of his break and his release point. The team is counting on him to bounce back for the 2018 season.
Martinez is a great mentor to Robles, both being shorter (5-foot-11) and thus needing to generate power and velocity in ways other than pure strength.
Martinez had a great career, winning three Cy Young Awards, and making eight All-Star Game appearances, as well as leading the majors in ERA five times and in strikeouts three times.
Martinez pitched for the Mets from 2005-2008. He made the All-Star Game in 2005 and 2006, and had his best year with the Mets in 2005, when he led the league in WHIP for the sixth and final time, as well as leading the league in strikeouts to walks ratio for the fourth and final time in his career.
Mets could be in on Adrian Gonzalez
The Mets could be interested in signing the recently released first baseman, according to James Wagner of the New York Times.
This says Mets may have been interested in 1B Mitch Moreland: https://t.co/vSNgRR9Dsl. I’ve heard Mets will at least consider 1B Adrian Gonzalez, who was released by Braves today.
— James Wagner (@ByJamesWagner) December 19, 2017
Gonzalez has had a long and successful career, making five All-Star appearances, most recently in 2015. He’s collected four Gold Gloves and two Silver Sluggers. He led the league in games played in 2008, walks in 2009 hits in 2011, and RBI in 2014.
He is coming off of a rough season in which he was limited by injury to 71 games, slashing .242/.287/.355.
Lagares altering his swing
Wagner also reports that center fielder Juan Lagares has altered his swing to hit more fly balls. Lagares hit .281 in 2014 but has struggled since, hitting just .253.
He’ll always be a defense-first player, but he is hoping to be able to capitalize on the increased fly ball rate in order to become a complete player. He’s working with the same swing coaches that J.D. Martinez and Chris Taylor worked with.
The Mets are hoping he can hit well enough to keep his glove in the lineup. ESNY’s Justin Birnbaum discusses whether that is a good idea.
Other Mets News, Stories
- ESNY’s Nicholas Santuccio breaks down which of the Mets starting pitchers would work the best as a relief pitcher.
- ESNY’s Justin Birnbaum looks at the best path for the Mets to take the rest of the offseason.
