The Mets have one of the best pitching staffs in the league, but the pitching isn’t coming from the pitchers.
Enter Luis Torrens, a 28-year-old catcher with a powerful right arm.
Even better, the Mets acquired him from the Yankees for cash only.
“You can count on him to provide quality at-bats, but he also takes care of the pitchers,” manager Carlos Mendoza said of Torrens. “He can lead the pitchers, he can take control of the game, and he has the ability to shut down the baserunners because of his arm strength, his quickness, so he’s a real help.”
On Saturday afternoon in the Mets-Rockies game at Citi Field, Torrens demonstrated why he is considered one of the best backup catchers in baseball.
In the top of the second inning, Torrens got Brenton Doyle out while he was attempting to steal second base.
Torrens has gotten out eight of the last 12 runners who have attempted to steal bases.
“It’s really nice to have a catcher that knows what he’s doing. He’s confident in my game plan and I’m confident in his game plan,” said Mets starting pitcher Christian Scott, who gave up seven hits and three runs in 4 1/3 innings with five strikeouts.
“It’s like he’s already calling the pitches that I’m thinking of,” Scott said. “It’s nice to have that chemistry and be on the same page.”
“He did an incredible job there.”
Torrens, who went 1-for-3 with one double, one RBI and two runs scored on Saturday, joined the Mets on May 31 and has been an immediate success since replacing Omar Narvaez.
Narvaez was dismal in his attempt to stop stolen bases, going 0-for-28 at-bats, which shows why he’s a former Mets player.
Torrence shattered any expectations the Mets had when they added him to their team, hitting eight extra-base hits in 19 games.
By comparison, Narvaez played in 77 games over two seasons and hit nine extra-base hits.
