On January 10, they officially introduced the pitcher to the media alongside his former New York Yankees colleague, outfielder Harrison Bader.
Severino was absolutely honest in his first public appearance as a Mets player about his feelings on staying in New York but transferring boroughs for the 2024 season. He simply stated, “I thought I was going to die as a Yankee.”
He went on to say that he wanted the “same pressure” with the next team he signed with. When a player fails to meet expectations, New York fans express their disapproval loudly. Severino expressed his appreciation for this, saying, “I need that in my life.” When I’m not doing well, I need others to give me the truth.”
These comments were captured by SNY’s Yankees account on X (formerly Twitter).
Severino Loves the Pressure of Playing in New York
Severino’s stint with the Yankees ended earlier than expected, but he stayed for a long time.
As an 18-year-old in the Dominican Summer League in 2012, he made his organizational debut with the Bombers. Sevy rose fast through the farm system and made his MLB debut as a 21-year-old in 2015. While he battled to keep healthy between 2019 and 2023, his time in the Bronx before to that was incredibly productive.
The highest point occurred in 2017-18. It included two straight All-Star Game appearances and two top-10 finishes in American League Cy Young voting. Severino threw more than 190 innings on both instances, the only times he’s thrown more than 102 innings in a single season. The righty went 33-14 with a 3.18 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and 450 strikeouts in 384.2 innings across these two seasons.
Pitching for the Yankees entails a great deal of pressure and high expectations. As former Yankee Jordan Montgomery put it, “the pinstripes are heavy.” During Sevy’s tenure with the Bombers, the team made the playoffs seven times, including three trips to the American League Championship Series. While he hasn’t had the best postseason outcomes (5.15 ERA in 43.2 innings), he understands what it’s like to be under pressure.
More significantly, he likes pitching in that setting.SNY’s X account captured Severino speaking on this point further. “The thing that keeps me going is the pressure,” he added. “I thrive under duress.” I spent a long period in New York. I’m excited to be with the Mets because I want to continue to experience that pressure.”
A Potential Key to Severino Bouncing Back in 2024
Severino had a difficult 2023 season. It was once again cut short due to injuries. He pitched in 19 games (18 starts) for the Yankees, totaling 89.1 innings. It resulted in career-low ERA (6.65), WHIP (1.65), hits allowed per nine innings (11.4), and strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.32).
Severino admitted to reporters that he has issues tipping pitches, which he plans to improve, according to Mojo Hill of Metsmerized. However, this is not a new problem.Will Sammon and Brendan Kuty of The Athletic reported on it on January 4. Sevy has been battling with pitch tilting difficulties since at least 2018.
The two pitches that have suffered the most recently, according to FanGraphs, are his four-seam fastball and slider. Opponents’ OPS against Sevy’s four-seamers improved from.622 in 2022 to 1.098 in 2023. The opposition’s OPS against his sliders followed a similar pattern, increasing from.560 in 2022 to.891 in 2023.
Severino expected to die a Yankee, but that was not to be. He’s now a Met, and he’s hoping to rediscover his All-Star form in a familiar surroundings.
