Luis Severino started off strong in his Mets Spring Training debut

New York Mets starting pitcher Luis Severino had the option to either throw live BP or face an opposing team Friday afternoon. He obviously turned down that rather quickly and wanted to make his Grapefruit League debut against the St. Louis Cardinals. Sevy did not disappoint, showing off the new tricks he added to his arsenal during the offseason.

Diving into his performance

Severino tossed two scoreless innings for the Mets while striking out one batter and not allowing the Cardinals to get a hit. However, his two scoreless frames were just a fraction of his great performance.

There are a few things to pinpoint, one being the fact that Severino was able to touch 98 mph on the radar gun. The other one being that he seemed to have good command over the pitches he was throwing which is always a good sign considering how much he struggled in 2023.

Severino has worked on a sinker this offseason and he showed fans just a taste of it on Friday. In fact, he used it along with five other pitches in his face-off against Matt Carpenter. He threw a sinker, fastball, slider, change up, and then finished him off with a cutter which was the pitch to reach 98 mph.

He even got a little fancy with his wind-up, adding a tiny stutter step that may have even thrown Carpenter off a bit. The second thing that needs to be highlighted is the fact that Severino faced regulars in the Cardinals lineup.

Besides Carpenter, he got to face Dylan Carlson, Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Gorman, Nolan Arenado, and Willson Contreras. Now I know it is still just spring training, but it is great to see him do well against the top guys in the Cardinals lineup.

Interview after the game

Severino was ready and well-prepared for his first Mets postgame interview. He was all smiles when a reporter asked about his 98 mph pitch and was happy to let the world know that he still has some juice left in his arm.

Severino was also questioned about Kodai Senga's injury and how much of a toll it was going to take on him considering the regular season is right around the corner. He responded by simply conveying that he is holding himself to an even higher standard now and reassured the media that the Mets have other guys on the roster that will help him carry the load.

Fans were happy to see Severino do well for his first time on the bump with the Mets and cannot wait to see more from the righty in the future.