NORTH PORT, Fla. — Mike Vasil went from dealing with up-and-coming minor league hitters within the Arizona Fall League to dealing with the Atlanta Braves’ deep group of elite home-run hitters in a matter of months. Spring coaching means being ready for something, even when meaning punching above your weight.
But Vasil appeared like he belonged for essentially the most half. Other than the changeup that Matt Olson bought ahold of for a two-run homer within the backside of the third, the 24-year-old Boston native dealt with a troublesome lineup effectively. Vasil allowed two runs on six hits and struck out three within the Mets 2-2 tie Thursday at CoolToday Park.
Those strikeouts may persist with him: Olson, Eddie Rosario and Ronald Acuna Jr.
“When I got the lineup [Wednesday night], I kind of looked at it and gave myself a little laugh,” Vasil mentioned. “It doesn’t really get much better than that.”
The changeup he threw to Olson had some run on it and the primary baseman took it over the fence for his seventh of the Grapefruit League season. However, Vasil noticed some swings and misses on the pitch that he has been engaged on for greater than a yr. It’s not fairly a brand new addition to his arsenal, however Vasil modified the grip on the pitch a few yr and a half in the past and was tinkering with it proper up till Thursday.
“The grip is fairly new in terms of the way I’m approaching it,” he mentioned. “It’s going to come along and develop the more I throw it and throughout the season, as well.”
Drafted out of the University of Virginia within the eighth spherical of the 2021 draft, Vasil is ranked the Mets’ Eleventh-best prospect. The group is attempting to get the pitching pipeline flowing to the Major Leagues and the massive righty may very well be in Queens in one other yr or two. His velocity has already elevated since beginning skilled baseball, along with his fastball having reached the upper-90s in spring coaching this yr.
Vasil attributes the uptick in velocity to the conditioning program he’s been on with the Mets and an improved psychological strategy to his time within the Arizona Fall League. He went 3-0 with a 2.93 within the prestigious prospect league final yr and got here away with a greater understanding of easy methods to pitch to his strengths.
“The fall league really set me up for better mental preparation,” he mentioned. “I think what I took from the fall league was, who am I as a pitcher and what is my identity? And how do I succeed against better hitters? I think that was a huge, huge part of my development as a player, as a person — everything. The fall league is an awesome experience.”
Vasil hasn’t been instructed the place he’ll begin the season however he’s probably headed for Double-A Binghamton, which might be a step up from final season when performed for Class-A St. Lucie and High-A Brooklyn.
OFF TO A RUF START
Darin Ruf hasn’t precisely lit up the Grapefruit League, however supervisor Buck Showalter was inspired by his double off Atlanta’s Jared Shuster on Thursday. The left-handed Shuster is the Braves’ greatest candidate for the No. 5 beginning job, so ought to the Mets hold Ruf after spring, he’s more likely to face him once more in some unspecified time in the future.
The double introduced Ruf’s common as much as .160 for the spring. Outfielder Tommy Pham, who the Mets additionally plan to make use of at DH towards left-handed pitching, went 0-for-3 to drop to .143 this spring.
However, Showalter mentioned the 2 have been placing in work on the again fields and have seen significantly better outcomes.
“Ruf is hitting .600 back there,” the supervisor joked. “Nobody wants to talk about that.”
EXTRA BAGS
Infielder Jeff McNeil returned from the World Baseball Classic and reported to Port St. Lucie. He had 9 at-bats on the again fields of the Clover Park complicated and can proceed taking part in in minor league video games Friday. … Right-handed reliever Adam Ottavino additionally returned from the WBC and labored out in Port St. Lucie. … Brandon Nimmo (proper knee and ankle sprains) had 5 at-bats on the again fields and ran the bases.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com