CLEVELAND — Jefry Yan’s celebration is just beginning.
The demonstrative lefty reliever was called up from Triple-A Syracuse on Monday, landing him with the Mets as a 29-year-old rookie ready for his major league debut.
Yan, who celebrated strikeouts in the minor leagues with dances and gyrations on the mound, said he intends to continue those displays with the Mets.
“I am going to continue to go out there the same way,” Yan said through an interpreter before the Mets beat the Guardians 6-2 at Progressive Field. “I am going to go out there with the same type of emotion, the same type of fun — have fun like I am playing a kids’ game, like I always have.”
Yan, who originally signed with the Angels, was out of baseball for five seasons beginning in 2016 before returning with the Marlins, for whom he advanced as far as Triple-A. A stint playing in Japan followed before pitching in the Rockies minor league system last season.
He recalled working as a roofer during his years removed from baseball.
“I used to have a lot of friends there, a lot of Mexicans that I worked with and they always told me, ‘Don’t give up, you can make it to where you want to be,’” Yan said. “We always had a lot of camaraderie working there working there, but they always pushed me to strive for more.”
In 35 appearances this season split between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse he pitched to a 3.24 ERA with 77 strikeouts in 41 ²/₃ innings.
He is looking forward to his first major league appearance and strikeout.
“I am going to enjoy that first one,” he said. “I have worked a long time for that moment.”
Kodai Senga, who has been utilized in long relief since his removal from the starting rotation, will receive a chance to pitch in one-inning, high-leverage spots, according to interim manager Andy Green.
Senga aced his first chance on Tuesday, pitching a scoreless ninth inning against the Guardians.
“I am grateful for the opportunity and to be able to pitch in situations like that,” Senga said through an interpreter. “At the same time, I made sure to tell the team that I signed as a starter and starting is something I would like to do. But I understand my results, my stats, don’t show that I necessarily deserve a starting pitching rotation spot.”
Green noted that such one-inning bursts for Senga weren’t possible with Luke Weaver, Huascar Brazobán, Brooks Raley and A.J. Minter assuming such high-leverage roles. All four veterans were traded in the last week.
“I don’t think you can expect [Senga] to pitch three out of four [days] at this point in time, but his right arm has 100 mph in it and a nasty forkball and that profile plays for a late-inning reliever,” Green said.
Robert Stock will remain in the rotation as the fifth starter, according to Green. The right-hander allowed one earned run over five innings in his start against the Marlins on Sunday.
Green said he anticipates Luis Robert Jr. will continue to play regularly, but he could see some action in the corner outfield positions. The Mets were unsuccessful in trading the veteran center fielder before Monday’s deadline.
