'What a story': How Mendoza has trusted his gut in Mets' run to NLCS

NEW YORK -- In the sixth inning of National League Division Series Game 3 between the Mets and Phillies, Sean Manaea -- so sharp up to that point -- lost his control. Manaea walked Kyle Schwarber. He walked Trea Turner. He suddenly had two men on base and no outs in a two-run game. At 74 pitches, Manaea was about to see Bryce Harper and Nick Castellanos for the third time.

Modern postseason strategy dictated an easy decision for manager Carlos Mendoza, who had hard-throwing reliever Reed Garrett ready to go in the bullpen. Mendoza’s bench coach, John Gibbons -- an experienced playoff boss himself -- advised Mendoza to make the move for Garrett. Pitching coach Jeremy Hefner agreed. But Mendoza grappled with the decision. He liked the matchup of Manaea on Harper. He trusted Manaea, who had been his best pitcher throughout the season’s second half.

He also knew that if he stuck with Manaea and the Mets lost the game, he would have to answer to president of baseball operations David Stearns, as well as the players in the clubhouse, the media and an irritated fan base.

Going with Garrett would have been the safe choice. Something about the situation told Mendoza to do the opposite. To go with his gut.

“I gambled,” Mendoza said. “And I’m glad it worked.”

Manaea struck out Harper and induced a double play from Castellanos to escape the jam. The Mets went on to win Game 3 in a rout, take Game 4 as well and qualify for the NL Championship Series beginning Sunday in Los Angeles. And Mendoza? Mendoza is looking to ride his instinct all the way to the World Series, where he would have a chance to become just the sixth rookie manager to win a title.

He’s already one of only 16 rookie skippers to reach the LCS.

“It’s a testament to Carlos -- a guy that's cool, calm, collected in pressure situations, makes the right calls, makes the right moves,” said Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, who came to know Mendoza as a Yankees coach from 2018-23.

These days, there’s a perception around Major League Baseball that on-field decisions are increasingly made by members of the front office. That games are scripted. That managers are in the dugout to follow orders, not deliver them.

Mendoza may be as analytically inclined as any manager in baseball, aware of the numbers and willing to make daily decisions based on them. But he’s also comfortable turning his back on them if he feels the situation warrants it, and Stearns has empowered him to do so.

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That tendency first surfaced during an April 14 game against the Royals, when Mendoza forfeited the platoon advantage by allowing Harrison Bader to hit against right-handed reliever Chris Stratton. Rather than turn to lefty pinch-hitter DJ Stewart in the eighth inning of a tie game, Mendoza chose the more contact-oriented Bader, who vindicated his manager by slapping a go-ahead, RBI single. One night later, under similar circumstances, Mendoza pinch-hit Stewart for Tyrone Taylor. The resulting RBI double tied the game for the Mets.

These are but two examples of moves that worked out, and Mendoza will be the first to cop to others that didn’t. Like all managers, he’s taken criticism at times for his bullpen management. Cynics have quibbled about his lineup construction. As recently as NLDS Game 4, Mendoza absorbed criticism for bringing Edwin Díaz into the ninth inning of a three-run game when David Peterson was cruising. His reasoning? Díaz needed to pitch, needed to grow comfortable given his recent struggles. The closer ultimately nailed down the three outs he needed.

“He’s been great with all of us,” Díaz said. “Everyone respects him a lot, how everything has been managed here. We didn’t start the season the way everyone wanted to, but he stuck with us. He trusted us. He allowed us to keep playing, and now it’s paying off. I think Mendy deserves a lot of credit for that.”

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All season, Mendoza has demonstrated uncommon savvy for a rookie manager -- from his decision to move Francisco Lindor into the leadoff spot in May, for example, to his understanding of clubhouse culture. Mendoza typically gets out ahead of issues, calling players into his office to explain his likely decisions before he makes them. He’s also willing to let his players lead, as during the now-famous meeting that sparked New York’s run up the standings.

“Mendy probably should have gotten a job well before this,” Stearns said recently. “We’re very fortunate that he didn’t.”

For Mendoza, already well on his way to being a baseball lifer at age 44, this responsibility has been a long time coming. His ability to succeed right away has been a testament to the character traits that prompted his old boss, Yankees manager Aaron Boone, to call him “the real deal.”

It’s also a highly personal charge for Mendoza, whose loved ones have rallied around him. Years ago, Mendoza’s wife Francis gave up her fledgling career as a dentist so the family could be together while her husband pursued his dream in the U.S. Perhaps somewhere in the back of their minds, they both envisioned the scene that unfolded Wednesday at Citi Field, where Francis, their children and Mendoza’s parents -- fresh off a flight from Venezuela -- hugged each other on the infield grass.

“This is amazing, man,” Mendoza said, after posing for pictures with the group. “Nobody had us anywhere close to this moment. … What a story.”