Mets' Piggyback Rotation: Manaea's Role Evolves

0:00For the New York Mets, it's March 21st. Here's what's happening. The New York Mets head into the 2026 major league baseball season with one of the deepest starting rotations around. They've got six solid pitchers locked in for opening day and a few more ready to step up if needed. But left-handers Sean Manaya, who's 34, won't follow the usual starter path right away. Manager Carlos Mendoza plans to use Manaya in a piggyback role for the first few games. It means he'll jump in after one of the other starters opens things up, handling a big chunk of innings since he can go deep. The early schedule lines of Freddie Peralta for games 1 and 6. David Peterson in game 2, Nolan McClaim for 3, Clay Holmes in 4, and Kodi. Sanga for 5. This setup skips a traditional 6-man rotation, giving the Mets flexibility with their pitching strength. Fans and analysts see it as a smart move to keep everyone fresh early on. Manaya looks sharp to spring with a 3.72 earned run average over 9 and 2 thirds innings,

1:02so he fits the plan well. His role should evolve as the season progresses, letting the Mets adapt based on how things play out on the mound.