Ex-Met Tommy Pham doesn’t hold his former teammates in high regard.
Pham, a 10-year veteran who is now on eighth team after being traded to the Diamondbacks, offered a blunt and scathing criticism of the team’s hitters to Francisco Lindor.
“Out of all the teams I played on, this is the least-hardest working group of position players I’ve ever played with,” Pham said, according to The Athletic.
There have been questions and concerns about why this current group of Mets have not performed up to expectations this season, on the heels of last year’s playoff appearance.
Even that 101-win season, though, ended with the team choking away a double-digit division lead to the Braves and then being ousted by the Padres.
As the Mets struggled this year, the players often discussed ways they could potentially turn around a season that was spiraling out of control, according to the report.
Pham reportedly informed Lindor of his thoughts during a meal at Fogo de Chao in Pittsburgh, with ex-Met and current Angels infielder Eduardo Escobar and rookie catcher Francisco Alvarez in attendance.
The veteran wanted to see more out of his teammates, and championed for the team to use two batting practice groups instead of one since he wanted to use the extra time to improve his outfield reads.
Pham’s veteran voice would matter since he’s been on so many teams during his career, including perennial contenders like the Rays, and Lindor praised him for his work ethic.
The outfielder is known for being a no-nonsense player — including in fantasy football — and he signed a one-year, $6 million deal with the team in the offseason.
“Day in and day out, he works as hard as anybody I’ve seen in my career, to the point where I told him before he left, ‘Hey man, thank you for teaching me how to work hard again,’” Lindor told the Athletic.
While Pham has mutual respect for Lindor, along with Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo, he seemingly had his reservations about others.
The story noted that Pham noticed how often his teammates play games like pool in the clubhouse.
Pham told The Athletic that his teammates seemed receptive to his criticism, but at least one teammate rebutted his opinion.
“Guys are super professional around here,” Jeff McNeil told The Athletic. “We go about our business, and everybody comes ready to play and does what they need to do.”
Nimmo didn’t take a side in the debate.
“Each person needs to assess that individually,” Nimmo told The Athletic. “You can only lead a horse to water; you can’t make him drink. Ultimately, a lot of this comes down to individuals and what they’re willing to do.”
Whether this group of Mets position players needs a shakeup – and whether to extend or trade Alonso – will be an important task for incoming president of baseball operations David Stearns.