The New York Mets had one of the busiest and most productive offseasons of any team in Major League Baseball. The Mets brought in Bo Bichette, Marcus Semien, and Luis Robert Jr., among others. That has provided quite a bit of optimism in Queens, New York.
As strong as the Mets' hitting appears on paper, it may not matter if they cannot pitch well. The starting rotation has several question marks, with Sean Manaea surprisingly becoming one of them.
Through Manaea's first two spring training starts, his average velocity on fastballs has been just under 89 miles per hour. That is down a few ticks from his normal range.
Following Thursday's spring start against the St. Louis Cardinals, Manaea shut down any concern. He expressed a lack of concern, with the expectation of the speed ramping up into the low-90s when the regular season begins, per Mets beat reporter Max Goodman.
Manaea fell to 0-2 in spring training on Thursday. He lasted just 2 2/3 innings, allowing three earned runs on six hits and a walk, while striking out four. His spring training ERA sits at 6.35.
The 34-year-old lefty is coming off a dreadful 2025 season. Manaea posted a 5.64 ERA across 60 innings, as he dealt with injuries throughout the season. That came on the heels of arguably the best season of his career. In 2024, his first season with the Mets, Manaea pitched to a 3.47 ERA over a career-high 181 innings.
The Mets added Freddy Peralta to the starting rotation. So, that bumped everyone down, and maybe takes some pressure off of the veteran lefty.
