With roots down in Queens, Manaea ready to build off 2024
NEW YORK 每 Sean Manaea was a free agent after the 2024 season, but by the sound of his voice on Monday, he didn*t want to play for anyone but the Mets, who signed him to a three-year, $75 million deal last month.
There were two important reasons for his return to the Big Apple: His wife, Talat, loved the family atmosphere the Mets created off the field. And most importantly, Manaea had the best season of his career last year, setting a career high in innings pitched (181 2/3) with a career-best 3.47 ERA.
Manaea took his pitching to another level during the final four months of the season, including the playoffs. In 21 starts from June 8 to the end of the regular season, the 32-year-old southpaw had a 3.40 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 127 strikeouts over 124 2/3 innings. He made four more starts in October, including a seven-inning gem against the Phillies in Game 3 of the National League Division Series.
※Just based off of last year with the coaching staff that we had going on, I thought [the Mets] were a perfect fit,§ Manaea said during a Zoom call with the local media. ※Just organizationally, I thought they did a lot of great things. I learned a lot from Hef [pitching coach Jeremy Hefner] and the rest of the staff. Just overall, I was happy with my time there and [the Mets] reached out and said they wanted to reunite. That was a top priority. After talking with Talat, we made the right decision and are just super happy to be back.§
Manaea credited some of his success on the mound to a Chris Sale start he witnessed against the Mets on July 25 at Citi Field. After watching Sale pitch 7 1/3 innings and strike out nine batters, Manaea lowered his arm slot to create a tougher angle for hitters. He supplemented that with a simplified pitch arsenal, relying more on sinkers and sweepers to help him transform into the ace of the Mets* staff.
Manaea is not done as far as improving his arsenal. He would like to maintain more consistency with his changeup. Opposing hitters batted .250 against the pitch last year 每 26 points higher than in 2023. He is currently working at Driveline Baseball and Diesel Optimization in Tampa to improve his skills on the mound.
※The changeup is the biggest thing. I know it can be great at times. # The more I can have it be great, the better off I will be,§ he said. ※At the end of the day, experimenting is cool. That*s what the offseason is for. # At this stage we are in a good spot, I*m excited to try to go against some hitters soon. Other than that, I try to keep things simple and build off of last year.§
Manaea has played for four big league teams 每 the Athletics, Padres, Giants and Mets 每 in the past four seasons, but he is happy to lay down some roots for a while in New York.
※It*s fun being on an adventure of seeing new cities [with] different organizations and meeting new friends. But at a certain point, it*s kind of nice to settle down, have some roots and things like that,§ Manaea said. ※Me and my wife are excited for that, just knowing where we are going to be here for the next three years, which is incredible. I*m grateful for that. It*s a great feeling. We actually can plan some things a little bit better and not just wander around all the time.§