New York Mets left-hander Steven Matz showing excitement over the team’s managerial hire of Carlos Beltrán.
Last week, the New York Mets finally landed on a new manager. They ultimately hired Carlos Beltrán, ending a search that lasted nearly a month. Beltrán previously played for the Mets from 2005-11 and was selected to four All-Star games during that tenure.
Many within the organization have shown excitement over the move, including left-hander Steven Matz. The veteran pitcher believes their new manager is someone who’s garnered much respect in his career and will be a true leader for this ballclub.
Steven Matz is excited to learn from Carlos Beltran:
"He's very respected in the game…he brings some great leadership to the team" pic.twitter.com/zhLUOvyZCP
— SNY (@SNYtv) November 8, 2019
“[The hire’s] really exciting,” Matz said at his charity bowling event this week. “He’s very respected in the game. He was a great player himself. I think he brings some great leadership to the team and he’s very passionate about the game. I think we’re all excited to have him as our leader.”
Matz has actually faced Beltrán before. Don’t forget, Beltrán only retired from his playing days in 2017, so it’s not like he’s been off the field for too long. Reporters asked Matz about the feeling of having a former opponent now become his manager.
“I think it’s going to be good. He’s probably faced a lot of us,” he said. “Just to have him there, I’m sure he could give us some pointers and some things he saw and all the information he has when he played just from different stuff on why he was so successful. I think he’ll be able to share that with all of us.”
This past season, Matz posted a record of 11-10 with an ERA of 4.21 and a WHIP of 1.341 through 32 games (30 starts). The 2020 campaign will be his sixth season in the majors (all with the Mets).
