Mets Notebook: Daniel Vogelbach Is ‘going To Bring It Every Day

Daniel Vogelbach was the man of the hour at the Mets clubhouse on Saturday.

The new signing, traded from the Mets to Pittsburgh to replace Colin Holderman, has some contacts with the team. Taijuan Walker is his teammate in Seattle. Growing up in South Florida, he was part of a travel ball team with Francisco Lindor and Tomás Nido. Vogelbach also befriended Pete Alonso, who was a Florida man.

Despite not starting Saturday's XI and starting designated hitter JD Davis, as opponents tend to pitch left-handed, Vogelbach has settled in at his new club.

"I take it every day," said Vogelbach in the clubhouse before the start on Saturday. "That's what I'm focused on. There will be good days and bad days. I think the only thing you can control is to be a good teammate and make winning a priority."

His recent major league stops have included Seattle, Toronto during the COVID season, Milwaukee and Pittsburgh. Throwing the Big Apple pennant in competition will offer Vogelbach a new baseball experience. However, speaking to the man himself, he insisted that the anger would not happen to him.

"I'm just a guy who wants to win," he said. “I've been very competitive since I was little. A team with one goal, to win the World Series, makes you feel good. It makes you want to play."

Vogelbach said that while playing for the Mariners he became close to Jay Bruce. As a former Met who spent chunks of three seasons with the team, Bruce Vogelbach offered some advice on how to deal with the bright lights on Friday night, both literally and figuratively.

"I don't think I've ever scored here," Vogelbach said, recalling only traveling with the Brewers when he was on the disabled list. "I think we need to know. [Bruce] basically told me to have fun and have the time of my life.”

the story goes on

Vogelbach's message was loud and clear: he couldn't wait to compete and he was excited to be contributing to a team that had the chance to set an unforgettable record.

"You don't just feel good in baseball, you feel good in life when you feel like it," he explained. "This team is special, from afar I'm happy and lucky to be a part of it."

From a baseball perspective, Vogelbach has one of the most unique profiles of anyone in the league. The first thing anyone will notice is his physical size, capable of massive home runs, but he's also the most patient hitter in the league. Vogelbach has the lowest strikeout rate of any MLB player with 250 plate appearances this season. At a staggering 31.9%, the latest Met is smarter than Juan Soto, the modern poster boy for record discipline.

"Of course it hurts sometimes," Vogelbach said of his piercing eyes. "I'm proud of that. To hit the pitch I wanted to hit, not the pitch the pitcher wanted to hit.”

Vogelbach was absent from Saturday's game. If there was room for him, Nido hit with two outs in the ninth and the Mets with a minus, but the Padres are left-handed in the bush.

nest is ok

Although he took the fastball out of Max Scherzer's hands on Friday evening, Tomas Nido is back in training on Saturday evening. The move from Mets wide receiver to the Pirates Michael Perez has sparked speculation that Nido would need some time on the disabled list, but judging from the start and pre-game comments on Saturday, everything is looking top notch.

"I'm leading the table with a bruise," said Nido, who was diagnosed with a bruise on his hand by the Mets. "I feel good, I've tried and I'm ready to go."

The sixth-year receiver said he was a little concerned when the injury initially occurred, which happened because he and Scherzer were crossing paths.

"As soon as I played, I thought the worst in the back of my mind," admits Nido. "He missed first. I hit him in the next inning and it felt good. When the swelling in my hand started moving, I got concerned. We wanted to rule out anything serious. This is the best scenario. I can play "Because of the bruises, it doesn't matter".

Nido played the worst on Saturday with the victim disqualification to 1-3.

DEGRADED AND RENEWABLE

The latest update on Jacob deGrom is that he'll sit outside on Sunday, see how he's feeling and then send him off to rehab before he joins the Mets. Buck Showalter was asked on Saturday if that was still the plan.

"Yes. We'll probably have to wait and see how he feels the next day. I think we'll have an idea on Monday."

Trevor May also traveled to Binghamton and will join the Double-A Mets on Sunday.