Mets interim manager Andy Green still expected to return to front office after season, David Stearns says

The Mets are staying the course with interim manager Andy Green. Green is still expected to return to the Mets’ front office after the season, president of baseball operations David Stearns said Monday, even though the team has played better of late with him in the dugout. “I think he’s done a great job here,” Stearns said before the Mets’ series opener against the San Diego Padres at Citi Field. “It helps that he’s had that familiarity with some of those players who are coming through our system. They know him. He knows them. He also has some familiarity with our veteran players, so that wasn’t completely new to anyone as well. I think any time a manager steps into a new role, having those pre-existing relationships is definitely a benefit.” Green, 49, was the head of the Mets’ player-development department before he took over as interim manager on June 26, replacing Carlos Mendoza, who was fired after a 34-47 start. At the time, Stearns said Green would return to his front-office role after the season, a vision Green aligned with. But the Mets entered Monday with a 22-22 record under Green, including going 9-3 over their previous four series, despite being aggressive sellers before the Aug. 3 trade deadline. Asked Monday if the door was open for Green’s future to be revisited, Stearns replied, “At this point, we’re not going there.” “As I said, my expectation, [and] I think Andy’s expectation, is he’s going to be rejoining the front office,” Stearns said. “I have no reason to believe otherwise right now.” A former MLB infielder, Green was the Padres’ manager from 2016-19 and the Chicago Cubs’ bench coach from 2020-23 before the Mets hired him ahead of the 2024 season. On the day he became interim manager, Green said he wasn’t seeking a return to the dugout because he loves overseeing the Mets’ farm system and the flexibility that comes with it. “This felt like a responsibility more than an opportunity once it was made known to me that there was nothing that was going to change the [managerial] change,” Green said at the time. “Once I learned that, I genuinely believed that — given my life experience — I was best positioned to help over the next three months and to see what we can get done as a group.” MOREL MOVE The Mets selected veteran utilityman Christopher Morel to their major-league roster Monday, adding a right-handed bat who can factor in at first base. Morel, 27, is expected to start at first base on Tuesday against Padres left-hander Robbie Ray, according to Green. “When his other starts occur, I don’t have a clear script for right now,” said Green, who previously coached Morel in Chicago. “I love having him. He’s a great person, a great teammate, great competitor, so he’s going to fit right in.” Morel batted just .162 without a home run in 22 games this season with the Miami Marlins, who released him in June. The Mets signed Morel to a minor-league contract later that month, and the results were much better at Triple-A Syracuse, where he hit .321 with 12 homers and a 1.098 OPS in 31 games. The Mets are depleted at first base, with Mark Vientos sidelined with a fractured right hand and Jorge Polanco relegated to designated hitter duty after nagging Achilles issues. Jared Young and Brett Baty both bat left-handed, so Morel — who hit 26 homers in 2023 with the Cubs — adds another dynamic there. In a corresponding move, the Mets designated infielder Gabrial Arias for assignment. INJURY UPDATES Juan Soto has worked out on the field in recent days, including running wind sprints, but his timeline to return from a calf strain remains uncertain. Stearns said Monday that he still expects Soto and closer Devin Williams (right shoulder strain) to return this season, even with the Mets beginning the day 11 games out of a playoff spot. “It’s purely dependent on whether they’re healthy enough to do so,” Stearns said. “I think there’s a peace-of-mind aspect for the player, sometimes, to come back. Our goal is to show up and compete and win every night. We’ve got baseball games left. Those are two really good baseball players, and we’d like them back on our active roster.” Soto (21 home runs, .947 OPS) has been on the injured list since July 25. Williams (4.66 ERA, 16 saves in 19 chances) landed on the IL last week. FARM FOCUS Several of the Mets’ most prominent prospects have moved up in their minor-league system. Émilien Pitre — acquired in this month’s trade sending Freddy Peralta to Tampa Bay— was promoted to Triple-A Syracuse. The 23-year-old second baseman batted .375 (15-for-40) with seven RBI in 10 games with Double-A Binghamton. Overall, he is hitting .316 in the minors this year. MLB Pipeline ranks Pitre as the Mets’ No. 12 prospect. Billy Amick — added in last month’s deal that sent A.J. Minter to Minnesota — was also promoted to Triple-A after he hit seven homers in 12 games with Double-A Binghamton. Amick, whom MLB Pipeline doesn’t rank among the Mets’ top-30 farmhands, boasts 30 homers at Double-A this year. And shortstop Elian Peña, the Mets’ No. 3 prospect, is headed to High-A Brooklyn. The Dominican-born Peña, 18, joined the Mets as an international amateur free agent last year, inking a $5 million signing bonus. “We’ve added a lot of talent with the draft and through our activity at the deadline,” Stearns said. “We’ve had some players play really well over the last month or six weeks, and that always helps. I like where our minor league system is at this point.”