Sitting in the shortened season never crossed Seth Lugo’s mind. Not even with a newborn child and the new coronavirus pandemic continues to spread across the country.
“I live my life to play baseball,” the valued right-hander said in a Zoom call Saturday afternoon as the Mets continued spring 2.0 training at Citi Field. “When they said we were playing, I was ready.”
While players like David Price, Ryan Zimmerman, Ian Desmond and Mike Leake have already been excluded due to a variety of health reasons, and Mike Trout and Bryce Harper have expressed concern, Mets players who have spoken to the media they have said that they are all in. Lugo, in particular, seems comfortable with the precautions being taken. The Mets are amazing workouts and limit the number of players on the field at the same time.
“I personally think you don’t live in fear,” said Lugo, the Mets’ best reliever a year ago, with a 2.70 ERA and 104 strikeouts in 80 innings pitched. “I’m not focused on that. I am focused on executing pitches and doing my job to the best of my ability. That is my number 1 concern.
“We have a responsibility to do what we have been told. We have had meetings on protocols and safe ways of doing things. As long as we respect those things, I’m sure it will be safe. “
The time when spring training was canceled due to the pandemic could not have been better for Lugo. It gave him the opportunity to get home three days before the birth of his son James on March 19 and spend time with his son at home in Louisiana, when he would normally be away playing baseball. He kept fit, running and throwing frequently. He pitched and pitched long bullpen sessions with friends several times a week. So, although the season is a few weeks away, Lugo does not care about his condition.
“I feel like I’m ready to go,” he said. “I faced a couple of hitters during this break and I think my stuff was about mid-season form. So I’m ready to go. “
Although Lugo is still interested in starting, the plan for him is to stay in the bullpen except for injuries. The Mets’ relief corps, a weakness in recent years, could be strong after the addition of former Yankee Dellin Betances and the possible years of recovery by former dominant relievers Edwin Diaz and Jeurys Familia, who fought mightily a year.
“I am glad that we have so many good weapons, so many different options and that they are all very different from each other,” Lugo said. “I feel like we have many different weapons. I think our bullpen is ready to be really good if we can all stay healthy and perform as we should. ”
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