MIAMI — Buck Showalter isn’t about to divulge the identity of the Mets closer, if there is one.
With Edwin Diaz likely to miss the season after undergoing surgery to repair a torn patellar tendon in his right knee, the manager has relievers with closing experience in David Robertson and Adam Ottavino to name two, but Showalter refrained during spring training from giving a pitcher the “closer” label and hadn’t changed his mind as of Wednesday.
“It’s kind of like your number one starter is the guy pitching that night,” Showalter said during a team workout at loanDepot park.
Robertson, who arrived as a free agent in the offseason, has 157 saves in 14 major league seasons. Twenty of those saves came last season pitching for the Cubs and Phillies.
Ottavino owns 33 saves over a 12-year major league career. Most of his closing experience came with the Red Sox in 2021, when he posted 11 saves.
The Mets also have Brooks Raley and Drew Smith who are considered high-leverage relievers and might figure into closing duties in some capacity.
“If you step back and look at who has done it the most, [Robertson] obviously kind of jumps at you,” Showalter said. “But I want to have a flexible bullpen, and the biggest thing is trying to keep them all healthy and at the same time put our best foot forward.
“The season and the games don’t always cooperate with you. We’re going to have to sit down and look at it after every game.”
Showalter was asked if he would prefer to avoid pitching Robertson and Ottavino in the same game.
“Not to win a game,” Showalter said. “We have got some other guys that we think might pop and present themselves as an option that you may not think that they would be, but we think they have the ability to do it.”
Diaz signed a five-year contract worth $102 million in November after dominating opponents last season and becoming a can’t-miss attraction as he entered games to Timmy Trumpet’s “Narco” at Citi Field.
“I feel good about our bullpen, even despite Diaz,” general manager Billy Eppler said. “It would have been more unbelievable, obviously, with him, but it’s going to have to be an obstacle we overcome.”
