Camp Notes: Nimmo Making Progress, Jett Williams Avoids Serious Injury

Friday marked another day of spring training for the Mets down in Port St. Lucie, FL. Pitchers and catchers are in full swing and more position players are beginning to arrive to camp as well.

Here are the updates from today:

Mark Vientos

As excitement continues to build in anticipation of Juan Soto putting on the blue and orange, Mark Vientos discussed what it means to go out on the field with players he grew up watching and how someone like Soto can impact a roster.

“It’s sick. There’s a lot of guys on this team I grew up watching,” Vientos said. “Now I’m sitting in the same lineup as them.”

After making it to the NLCS last season, Vientos believes that the Mets have one of the top lineups in baseball and could lead the organization to a championship in 2025. He said it would mean “everything” for the Mets to go all the way and that winning a championship is the mentality they are coming into camp with.

“The way we ended last year and the mentality I went into this offseason is to get to the World Series and I want to it all for sure,” Vientos stated.

He also described how he was trying to prove himself and make a name for himself in 2024. This year, Vientos said it’s more about, “seeing the game within the game, slowing the game the game a bit more down.”

Tylor Megill

Tylor Megill was back on the mound for live batting practice on Friday. Manager Carlos Mendoza spoke with the media and gave his reactions on the right-hander’s performance.

“I thought it was good, velo was good, the way he used all of his pitches,” Mendoza said.

Specifically, Mendoza said he was impressed with his curveball.

“This is a pitch that he’s been working on this offseason, I like the movement on it and the way he was able to control it.”

Mendoza described Friday as a good day for Megill, who if he can simplify his pitches, has “potential.” Megill has continued to fight for a spot on the Mets’ roster, even being sent down to Triple-A in 2024. Mendoza said he has spoken with him already about having to earn his spot in the rotation.

“He’s a pro, he understands. He wants to be a big league pitcher,” said Mendoza. “I like having those conversations, I like the feedback we get from them. He’s competing.”

Mendoza said that they told Megill that they are going to build him up and they’ll see what happens from there. But in order to get there, Mendoza admitted that he will need to be consistent and put hitters away.

“It’s always that one inning that gets away from him, it comes with experience. He’s been in the league for quite a bit now and has been through a lot: up and downs, and success,” Mendoza said.

“He’s in a really good place right now (mentally) because of the experience and what he’s been through the last few years.”

Pitching Rotation

When asked about the pitching rotation and where it stands, Mendoza explained that it is still a “fluid situation.”

“A lot can happen between now and March 27. We just have to prepare and build everyone up and make sure everyone’s ready,” Mendoza said.

He said once they reach the end of camp, he hopes they will be in a position to have those difficult conversations.

Brandon Nimmo

After the Mets made it to the NLCS in 2024, signed Soto out of free agency and re-signed Pete Alonso, Nimmo described 2025 the same way Vientos did.

“Any time you go out and do what he did this offseason, you understand the expectations are there … Even with what we did last year with the team that we had, we were able to set a new standard for this organization,” Nimmo said.

Nimmo stated that Steve Cohen and everyone in the organization wants to build on what they did last year.

“We’re going out, we’re trying to win a World Series, there’s no doubt about it. We’re going to start preparing for that right now,” Nimmo said.

Nimmo said that he’s excited to have Soto as a teammate and explained the impact he believes he’ll have both on the field and in the clubhouse.

“I’m really excited about it. He’s been a thorn in our side playing against him for a long time now … He’s one of those guys you hate to compete against, but I hope I love him as a teammate,” Nimmo said. “He’s someone we’re looking forward to having in the middle of our lineup and I’m excited for him to get down here.”

Nimmo also talked about his excitement to have Alonso back.

“Him and I have been together a long time, and any time you have 30 to 40 homers in your lineup, you’ve got to love that, especially with the lineup that we have going right now. I think he’s going to have a lot of success hitting behind Soto and we’re looking forward to getting him here and getting things going,” Nimmo said.

Nimmo is coming into 2025 recovering from plantar fasciitis, which he started dealing with toward the end of 2024. He said currently he’s at about “91 percent” on running and in a “good spot” overall.

Over the course of the offseason, he received physical therapy, shock therapy, received a PRP injection, did strengthening exercises and found new cleats.

“We’re trending upwards, we’re going to keep stacking good days on good days,” Nimmo said.

He also expressed that his foot started feeling good again within the last month and said the goal right now is not to push too hard because it is trending in the right direction.

Nimmo may also serve as the Mets’ designated hitter on occasion.

“It’s a possibility,” Nimmo said. “But I’m also confident in everything we’ve done this offseason that I think we can kind of put this in the rearview mirror if we nip it in the bud now.”

Jett Williams

Jett Williams was hit by a pitch from Blade Tidwell on the right hand during live batting practice Friday.

Per Williams, he is fine and the hit was to the “meaty part” of the hand. He did wear a compression sleeve on his hand afterwards, but appears to have avoided any significant damage.

The 21-year-old missed a majority of the 2024 campaign with a wrist injury that required surgery.

Jeff McNeil

Jeff McNeil arrived to camp on Friday and was seen taking batting practice as well as getting some defensive work in.

The Mets have just over a week before their first game this spring against the Houston Astros on Feb. 22.

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