JUPITER, Fla. — Amidst the worst year of his career, the one thing Luis Severino never lost was his electric fastball. The Yankee-turned-Met reached back on the last fastball of his first spring training start Friday afternoon and hit 98 mph on the gun, showing that he still has that fastball.
Severino made his first Grapefruit League start Friday at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium, throwing two innings in a 3-2 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. He struck out one and threw 30 pitches, five shy of his maximum allotment for the day. It was a sharp, encouraging start that he can build on over the next few weeks.
“The way he was using all of his pitches, I was pretty pleased,” said manager Carlos Mendoza. “Especially when he got behind on [Willson] Contreras 3-1 and threw a changeup right-on-right, that was good to see. He came right after him and got him out.”
In the first inning, leadoff hitter Dylan Carlson rolled over on a two-seamer but second baseman Yolmer Sanchez double clutched and bounced a throw to first allowing him to reach on an error. Carlson stole second, then tried to steal third but was thrown out by Starling Marte on a 9-5 double play. Nolan Gorman then flew out to Marte in right to end the inning.
With the Mets up 1-0 in the second after a solo home run by Mark Vientos, Severino fell behind 2-1 on Nolan Arenado and 3-1 on Contreras before getting them both out with his sinker. Matt Carpenter worked the count full before striking out on Severino’s 97.8 mph fastball.
“I have some in the tank,” Severino said. “I’ve just been waiting for the perfect time to do it.”
Severino was throwing as high as 96 on the backfields in his last live batting practice, so the velocity didn’t come as a surprise to Mendoza, but it was a bit of a surprise for the pitcher himself.
“I talked to him and I just asked how he was feeling,” Mendoza said. “It was positive, he was feeling good, When I told him, ‘Hey, you touched 98 on that one,’ he didn’t know. So yeah, he was good. Overall, it was a good outing.”
The Mets had initially planned for him to throw live batting practice once more and play a minor league game before a Grapefruit League game. But Severino wanted to see how his stuff played against big-league hitters, and he was able to face some of the Cards’ best. Doing so allowed him to build some confidence.
“That tells you about the way he’s feeling that he felt that he wanted to come over here and face some big league hitters,” Mendoza said.
Confidence is needed right now with the loss of Kodai Senga. Severino doesn’t just want to be known as a once-great ace, but he’s aware of what people think of him after he posted a 6.65 ERA last season.
“Talking for myself, you know, I think there could be a little bit of pressure because he’s really good,” Severino said. “But I think there are a lot of good guys. We’ve got [Jose] Butto, who has got a great fastball and command of everything. [Tylor] Megill has been amazing. So there are a lot of guys that can go out there. As for me, I just need to be healthy and be out there.”
There is little to glean from early spring training starts, but Mendoza is rooting for Severino right alongside Mets fans. The former Yankees coach has known the 30-year-old since he was a minor leaguer. He has seen the highs and lows of his career and believes that a healthy Severino can still be a top pitcher in the league.
The Mets have done what they can to foster success. Bullpen coach Jose Rosado went down to Tampa to watch him throw. The trainers visited him in Tampa as well. The Mets worked with him to help fix his mechanics so hitters wouldn’t know what was coming.
“He’s been through a lot the past couple of years with injuries, but now he’s in a good place,” Mendoza said. “He’s important. It’s a big year for him and we’re counting on him. I’m excited to see Sevy return to his old form.”
The fastball is still there. The Mets are confident that the old Severino will start to emerge soon too.
