Welcome back to the Mets Beat newsletter! Anthony DiComo has covered the Mets for MLB.com since 2007, including the past 17 seasons full-time on the beat. |
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LOS ANGELES -- Thursday morning, just outside downtown Boca Chica, Dominican Republic, some of the highest-ranking Mets executives gathered for a celebration. For years, Mets officials dreamed upon, then eventually designed and constructed a brand-new development facility for the youngest athletes in their organization -- the 16-to-18-year-olds who sign as international amateurs in hopes of developing into blue-chip prospects. That structure is now fully operational, christened Thursday by a ribbon-cutting ceremony. The centerpiece of the facility is a 10,000-square-foot weight room and nutrition bar. There is also a 16,900-square-foot turf agility field, an expanded training room featuring hot and cold plunge pools, an open-air batting cage expansion, a remodeled clubhouse, classrooms for education programs and even 18 suite-style bedrooms for players. “A lot of them have minimal exposure to the type of training envisionment that we’re going to be putting them in,” Mets director of player development Andrew Christie said. “Having the best possible equipment, the most possible space, the greatest number of options to make them more physically gifted I think is a huge, huge competitive advantage for us.” Part of the inspiration for the facility, which doesn’t exist on this scale elsewhere in the Dominican Republic, came from similar ones popping up across the Division 1 college football landscape. Much like those programs, the Mets train a significant number of players in the Dominican -- around 70-120 athletes, depending on the time of year. Spending just south of $10 million on a best-in-class facility, Christie said, provides “just a massive return on investment” that will make Mets prospects “better, faster.” |
“It’s a huge tool,” Mets assistant general manager Eduardo Brizuela added. “When you get these young players to sign or to commit to the organization, the biggest thing they lack compared to the players in the United States is the physical element. So being able to have a place where these guys can continue to get stronger, to eat and to do everything right, it’s a difference-maker.” The development mirrors an ongoing $60 million renovation of the Mets’ player development complex in Port St. Lucie, Fla., which is where many international players head once they graduate from the Dominican facility. Both projects were fully funded by team owners Steve and Alex Cohen, with the idea of creating a high-quality line of facilities throughout the farm system. “It’s another instance of Steve and Alex going above and beyond the rest of the league,” Christie said. “They have continued to do that since they bought the team.” In helping to generate ideas for the project, Christie visited more than 20 rival facilities around the Dominican Republic. He drew particular inspiration from the Pirates, whose training grounds were previously an outlier due to their size and scope. Now, Christie said, “we’ve just become an even bigger outlier.” |
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Over the past several years, Christie, director of Latin American operations Juan Henderson, Dominican facility manager Virgilio Santamaria and dozens of Mets officials spent time talking to architects, making presentations and budgeting the costs of the project, among other tasks. More recently, senior vice president of business operations John Ricco has spearheaded the project. And, of course, there was Steve Cohen, whose response to the $10 million price tag was “a quick yes,” per Christie. In addition to developing players already in the organization, the facility should help the Mets recruit teenage international prospects who could become the next José Reyes, Francisco Alvarez or Juan Soto. While signing bonuses tend to be the most important factor there, a cutting-edge facility can only help the Mets lure talented prospects to their organization. It will even be of use for Dominican players already in the Majors, who can use the facility in the offseason, or to MLB free agents thinking of signing with the Mets. “It’s awesome,” Christie said. “Trying to basically ensure that anywhere any Mets player goes, from the Dominican Summer League to the Major Leagues, they have a place to train that’s best in class is huge. It’s quite frankly something we have been missing. And I think we are now going to be on the cutting edge -- not only honestly in the baseball industry, but in sports.” |
MLB MORNING LINEUP PODCAST |
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Who led the 1986 Mets in triples? A) Wally Backman B) Lenny Dykstra C) Darryl Strawberry D) Mookie Wilson |
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• The Mets went 20 consecutive innings without scoring from Saturday through Monday, marking their third scoreless streak of at least 17 innings so far this season. That’s … not great. I dug into what’s been going on with this offense. • Nolan McLean, who deserved better than a no-decision on Tuesday night, possesses one of the most unique repertoires in the Majors. But it’s not just the quality of his stuff that sets him apart. As Mike Petriello points out in this deep dive, the disparity in McLean’s pitch movement is what really makes him special. • It was bad enough that Soto was injured. Now, one of his backups in left field, Jared Young, has a torn meniscus in his left knee. The good news? Soto has begun a running progression, keeping him on track to return within the next 7-10 days. • Finally, I really enjoyed this story from Sonja Chen on Jackie Robinson Day at Dodger Stadium, where the Mets and Dodgers took part in a joint ceremony near the sliding Robinson statue in center field. Marcus Semien, one of the Black players on the Mets, had some poignant comments on the day, as did manager Carlos Mendoza. Check out Sonja’s full story here. |
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B) Dykstra Dykstra led the Mets with seven triples as their regular leadoff man in 1986. It was the highest single-season total of his career. |
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