DUNEDIN, Fla. — Tobias Myers gave the Mets reason to be hopeful about the right-hander Monday, as he was impressive in his first outing with the team.
Ever since he was acquired from Milwaukee in the offseason, the Mets made sure to note that Myers wasn’t simply a throw-in with starter Freddy Peralta.
They wanted someone to help replace Brandon Sproat, a top prospect who was part of the package sent to the Brewers.
Myers tossed 2 1/3 scoreless innings in a 4-3 win over Toronto at TD Ballpark, walking none and striking out three.
More importantly, it was an opportunity for Myers — who is expected to pitch in a multi-inning role this season — to work on some new pitches that he’s added to his repertoire over the past year.
There was the splitter he added in the second half of last season and is still fine-tuning, as well as a slider that he and pitching coach Justin Willard added more than a week ago.
“The slider I threw a lot today,” Myers said. “They probably think it’s a curveball that’s pretty big and I want to get the [velocity] up on that.”
The splitter, Myers believes, is more effective than the changeup he threw previously.
While making sure to note the pitch is nothing like teammate Kodai Senga’s famous ghost fork, Myers did say having experienced pitchers like Senga and Clay Holmes around — pitchers also adept at moving the ball around the zone — will help his development.
The Mets have said Myers will open the season on the major league roster, whether in the rotation or the bullpen, and he could get a start in the spring, especially when Holmes and Nolan McLean head to the World Baseball Classic.
In the meantime, manager Carlos Mendoza has liked what he’s seen, especially the “life” on Myers’ fastball.
Nick Morabito made his presence felt in all facets of the game Monday.
The outfielder, who spent all of last season at Double-A Binghamton, had an RBI single off José Berríos and stole second.
He also made a fine running catch down the left field line on a fly ball by Daulton Varsho.
Afterward, Mendoza called Morabito “a baseball player.”
“He’s a guy that’s a pretty good defender, he has good at-bats, puts the ball in play and runs the bases,” Mendoza said. “He can win games.”
The Mets have not been shy about trying to steal bases in the early going this spring and Mendoza said to expect more of it.
“We are always gonna be aggressive, especially when the situation presents itself,” Mendoza said. “We’ve got the personnel.”
