PORT ST. LUCIE — Sean Manaea became a father last year when his wife, Talat, gave birth to their daughter. It’s fitting since Manaea has become like a dad to some of the younger pitchers in the clubhouse. Every morning, Mets prospects can be seen sitting around a coffee table in front of a chess set, with Sean Manaea in the middle coaching them on optimal moves to make. Maybe it’s more like an older brother dynamic, since Manaea isn’t going easy on them and he’s definitely not letting them win. If he’s not at the chess set, he’s in front of his locker talking with rising young starters Jonah Tong, Nolan McLean and Christian Scott. Some of that is due to sheer proximity since their lockers are all in the same row, but much of it is the 34-year-old Manaea’s easygoing nature and willingness to share his experiences with other pitchers. “He’s a real friendly guy and just easy to talk to,” right-hander Jack Wenninger said after making his first Grapefruit League start Tuesday. “He’s just kind of relaxed all of the time. He’s [told us], ‘Have a good time while you’re here. Enjoy it.'” Manaea has seen and experienced a lot in baseball. He went from a first-round pick by the Kansas City Royals to an ace in Oakland, then struggled so much in San Diego and San Francisco that he was demoted to the bullpen. He was a big-game guy for the Mets in 2024, then injured and ineffective last season. What Scott noticed was that he was still the “friendly” and “relaxed” Manaea, even when he wasn’t pitching well. “He’s awesome,” Scott said. “Just being able to not ride the highs or the lows, just be super consistent, that’s really hard to do. Sometimes, if you have a lot of success, it’s easy to ride that, but if you’re struggling, it’s a little bit different game for you. But being able to really be the same guy at the field every day, no matter what, brings that consistency, it’s really important.” Early on in Scott’s rookie season in 2024, Manaea and Pete Alonso took him to dinner at the Polo Bar in Manhattan. A true, a true welcome-to-the-bigs moment for Scott, the Fifth Avenue restaurant designed by Ralph Lauren is famous for its ambiance, celebrity clientele and its infamous burger. Scott pretended not to have sticker shock once he saw the menu, gamely offering to pick up the check (Manaea and Alonso didn’t let him). That Manaea wanted to come to dinner with the new kid wasn’t lost on Scott, but more importantly, it let Scott know that he could go to a veteran starting pitcher in the clubhouse when he had questions or needed advice. “This was really special my rookie year because I didn’t really have too many guys on the team I knew before that,” Scott said. “Being able to just soak all the information I could from him was awesome for me.” Though he has long had a reputation for being good in the clubhouse, Manaea never set out to try to become any sort of authority figure on pitching or on chess, for that matter. Manaea never intended to be a leader, it simply happened as people gravitated toward him, and as he became comfortable with his spot on the Mets, knowing he would be in Queens through the 2027 season. “I can offer only so much,” he said. “Everyone has got their own things that they’ve got to do. At the end of the day, I can only offer my perspective, and guys appreciate that or not. It is what it is. I don’t really impose anything, I’m just trying to help any way I can.” The Indiana native has the vibe of a West Coast surfer, which is fitting since his teammates see him as someone who can deftly navigate the waves of a baseball season. He’s also innately curious about the world around him, which is probably why his teammates feel so comfortable with him. He enjoys photography and traveling, and has already taken his infant daughter to Italy. His ever-widening worldview was expanded even more when his daughter was born, and his appreciation for Talat grew as well. “She’s the strongest, most resilient, smartest person I know,” he said of his wife. “Watching everything go down and how she handled everything, I couldn’t do that. It was just really cool to see how she is as a mother, those mama bear instincts and her transformation.” The Mets are relying on a bounce-back campaign from the lefty. He understands how much of the team’s success hinges on the starting rotation, and how important it is that he pitches well. He’s healthy, his arm slot is back up where it should be after it drifted southward last season, and he’s happy with how his stuff feels this spring. Same, but different. “The energy that brings to the field every day is the same no matter what happens,” Scott said. “To have that constant presence and just the veteran leadership that he has, it’s huge for us.” ...read more read less