Mets' Bullpen Struggles: Manaea's Role Uncertain

0:00It's April 3rd. You're listening to New York Met's news today, AI-powered coverage of your team. I'm Cory with the story. The New York Met's are grinding through a tough early schedule, with three extra inning games in their last five days, and their bullpen is feeling the... Burn. Starters have been solid, but the relievers are getting hammered because Sean Manea, slotted as a bullpen guy, has barely seen action. The plan was to use him in piggyback starts to keep him stretched out like a starter, but through seven games he's only pitched once for one point, one innings on 29 pitches against the pirates. Earlier this week, manager Carlos Mendoza talked up that piggyback role, but it hasn't clicked yet. Manea's fastball is stuck in the high 80s, topping out at 89.8 miles per hour, even with the regular season adrenaline he expected to boost him past 90. He considers himself a starter at heart, and emits the uncertainty as frustrating. Telling reporters he has no clue how the team plans to build his.

1:01Workload. Manea's light usage is rippling through the pen, forcing guys like Richard Love Lady to pitch three times in four days, just to eat innings. Others like Tobias Meyers have handled multi-inning spots twice already, and with Lewis Garcia struggling early, there's no depth for short starts, or... Extras. Mendoza's holding back top arms like Brooks Rayleigh and Devon Williams from back to back to preserve them. Now the Mets face nine straight gains without an off day, making this a risky spot. They might piggyback Manea behind Nolan McLean on Friday for three or four innings to spell the relievers and manage McLean's rookie load, or call. But without multi-inning stints, the bullpen stays taxed. Bottom line. This setup isn't cutting it. Manea needs real work as a long man or true reliever, or it'll start costing the Mets wins before April's.