Jose Iglesias was more emotional about the opportunity to play in his 1,097th MLB game than he was about his first.
The 34-year-old infielder found out he’d been promoted by the Mets from Triple-A late Thursday night and reminisced about his time as a top prospect in the Red Sox organization and his time in September 2011 on the cusp of making his major league debut.
“They’re both special, right?” Iglesias said. “But this one means so much more to me. Personally, it’s been a lot harder to get to this point. I’m so proud of myself, the work that I’m doing and the information that I’m getting from this incredible staff. I don’t take it for granted.”
Iglesias started at second base in his first MLB game in 605 days on Friday night against the Diamondbacks at Citi Field.
The Mets were his fourth team since then, and there was no guarantee he’d be able to return from the minor leagues.
“I feel like I’m good enough to play at any level,” Iglesias said. “There have been some tough times for me and my family, but those are all behind me now. I feel like a rookie now.”
The Mets have been without a backup center fielder since parting ways with Joey Wendle on May 15.
Iglesias will fill in for struggling left-handed hitter Jeff McNeil at second base and Mark Vientos at third base after Brett Batty was demoted to Triple-A.
“He deserves credit for what he’s done,” coach Carlos Mendoza said. “His willingness to make adjustments at that stage in his career says a lot about the person he is.”
Mendoza said the area Iglesias needs to improve in the analytics era is “making an impact on the baseball,” as he is a skilled defensive player with a career .279 batting average and .382 slugging percentage.
“He started working on his bat speed at the end of spring training,” Mendoza said. “Here’s a guy who’s played in the major leagues for (11) years saying, ‘Hey, I’ve got to hit the ball harder. What can I do?’ He put himself in a good position for us to make the decision to promote him.”
The Mets did not consider promoting prospect Luisángel Acuña, Mendoza said.
Iglesias’ strengths are his “elite hands,” versatility and “instincts.”
“The Triple-A manager called me and said, ‘I have some good news for you,'” Iglesias said. “It took me a while to say anything. I was so emotional at the time.”
Iglesias was previously the centerpiece of the three-way trade that sent ace Jake Peavy to the Red Sox.
A lot has happened since then, including his side hustle of producing music and the possibility that his Friday walk-up music will be self-composed.
“It’s now or never. I’m so happy. I get to play in a major league game tonight,” Iglesias said. “It’s huge for me. I’m so humbled. I’ve been on ‘The Show’ for over 10 years and it’s just not enough. [stop] It’s getting better.”
