Now — and again — pitching and batting ninth for the New York Mets, Number Twenty-Seven…
Jay-uh-reese…
Jay-reese…
Juh-reese…
Juh-ree-us…
Juh-roo-us…
There haven’t been too many Mets whose first name gets pronounced with such diversity, but however you say it, welcome back Jeurys Familia [1], former setup man and closer, to your new role as prospective setup man and, one would guess, occasional closer. Given baseball’s infatuation with bullpen flexibility, he could be opening games, stanching rallies or getting that one big out anywhere in the course of Metropolitan events.
Pitching philosophies have evolved quite a bit since 22-year-old Familia rose to the majors for a quick peek in September of 2012. The Mets’ fortunes rose with his ascent and fell partly in sync with his inconsistency. Jeurys was a legit team MVP candidate in 2015 en route to our division title and pennant. He shared in the goat horns of the World Series that followed. He became that closer who piled up loads of saves yet stood out in the mind’s eyes for those he didn’t get or nearly blew. He gave up the home run that killed our last playoff appearance in 2016 (though it’s not like we were scoring that night). He was suspended, injured, revived, not quite revered, missed a bit when traded, gone not long enough to be forgotten.
Familia’s a Met again [2] — the 48th Recidivist Met, once he sees action — signed for three years at some amount that is either a bargain or outrageous. We’ll know how to rate it based first on who else we’re told can’t join him because Familia got paid, then on how well he does and we do. At his best, he does very well. He helped us to two postseasons, then Oakland to one in his blink of an eye as an Athletic. The back end of a bullpen that pencils in as Familia to Diaz sure seems formidable. If our rotation is four-fifths the guys we consider our headliners (subject to change…especially Synderchaange), you’d think that leaves only an inning or two here or there that isn’t theoretically covered. Oh, but how games and seasons can be lost in those random innings.
Let Brodie Van Wagenen keep building the pen without giving away the store as he figures out the rest of the field. And though it’s been said, many times, many ways, welcome back Jeurys to you.