Díaz set for spring debut vs. Marlins

PORT ST. LUCIE — Mets closer Edwin Díaz will pitch in his first exhibition game of the spring on Monday against the Marlins at Clover Park. According to manager Carlos Mendoza, Díaz will follow right-hander Tylor Megill, who will start the game. Díaz is scheduled to throw 20 pitches against Miami.

“It’s good [to get Díaz back in the game]. It’s exciting for the boys, the whole team and himself,” Mendoza said. “The fact that he gets to pitch in a Major League game for the first time after a long year of rehab, it’s important for all of us — obviously for him. We are excited to watch him pitch tomorrow.”

Díaz hasn’t appeared in a Major League game since the Mets were in the postseason in 2022. That year, Díaz had a season to remember, saving 32 games with a 1.31 ERA and winning the Trevor Hoffman Award as the best reliever in the National League.

Díaz didn’t play at all last year after suffering a complete right patellar tendon tear during the World Baseball Classic on March 16. His absence hurt the Mets’ bullpen, which went 25-36 with a 4.48 ERA and 34 saves in 52 opportunities.

Thompson enjoying time with MetsShortly after signing a Minor League contract with the Mets last December, outfielder Trayce Thompson received calls from the team’s hitting coaches, Jeremy Barnes and Eric Chavez. It was the first time that coaches had called Thompson after he signed with a club. Usually, he hears from the assistant general manager or someone from the front office.

Barnes and Chavez talked about how excited they were to have Thompson on the team and how he could get back to being a player that could contribute to a winning team. Thompson was excited to hear from them, and he’s become a pleasant surprise this spring. Entering Sunday’s action against the Tigers, Thompson was 5-for-14 (.357) with two home runs and six RBIs. It has helped that he has used the entire field to get on base. The Mets are looking for a right-handed hitter that could provide power off the bench. Remember, in 2022, Thompson had his best season, hitting .256 with a career-high-tying 13 home runs and a career-high 41 RBIs in 80 games as a reserve with the Padres and the Dodgers.

“The first or second day I was here, we got in the cage, went to work and tried to tweak some things — make me more direct on the baseball,” Thompson said. “It will make me cover more pitches, especially at the top of the zone. … It has felt good. It’s always going to be a work in progress. It’s always something I have to work on. It’s almost like maintenance every day. It has been exciting. These guys have been awesome. It makes getting to work in the cage fun for me.”