Luis Rojas and the Mets Embrace Their Second Chance

Rojas was born in the Dominican Republic and grew up in major league clubhouses. His father, Felipe Alou, won 1,033 games in 14 years as a manager in the majors, and his brother, Moises Alou, played 17 seasons, the last two with the Mets. Neither was present for Rojas’s news conference, but the succession was clear. Felipe wore No. 17 as a manager, Moises No. 18, and on Friday the Mets co-owner Jeff Wilpon slipped a No. 19 Mets jersey over Rojas’s collared shirt.

Rojas spoke in both English and Spanish when expressing gratitude, and he thanked his family for preparing him for this opportunity. Rojas referred to his time with his father as a university for baseball studies, but he did not commit to a certain style.

“My style of managing is the team that I have,” Rojas said. “We have a really good roster. We have really good starting pitching. We have a really good bullpen and we can score some runs. I feel pretty good about it right now.”

He will get his first feedback this weekend. While some Mets employees managed Rojas’s news conference on Friday afternoon, others were preparing to host a fan fest for the first time in team history, at Citi Field on Saturday. As part of the program, Rojas will meet with fans in a town hall format.

“We’re moving forward,” he said.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/24/sports/baseball/luis-rojas-mets.html?emc=rss&partner=rss