Yankees’ Aaron Boone discusses Mets hiring Carlos Mendoza

It's widely thought that the New York Mets settled on hiring New York Yankees bench coach Carlos Mendoza as their new manager after former Milwaukee Brewers skipper Craig Counsell rejected the Amazins to join the Chicago Cubs. 

Current Yankees manager Aaron Boone thinks the Mets got "the complete package" in Mendoza. 

"He’s smart, tough, prepared, and works his butt off," Boone said about Mendoza during a chat with SNY MLB insider Andy Martino. "And a very loyal person. He has a great family. And I can count on him, always. He has grown in the job. He has earned this opportunity. Smelling the winds over the last month, I thought he was going to get one of these jobs because people were seeing what I have seen."

As noted by Jeff Passan of ESPN, Mendoza previously managed in the low minor leagues and spent the past four seasons as a bench coach under Boone. The 43-year-old replaces 2022 National League Manager of the Year Buck Showalter after the Mets informed Showalter ahead of the 2023 regular-season finale that he wouldn't be retained. 

Per Passan, Counsell reset the market regarding what managers earn when he received a five-year, $40M contract from the Cubs. Counsell holds the Brewers' all-time record for most wins recorded by a skipper and was routinely linked with the Mets this fall after former Milwaukee president of baseball operations David Stearns accepted that role in Queens. 

"A great baseball man and a great friend," Boone said about what he's losing with Mendoza's move to the Mets. "We can complete each other’s sentences. We communicate really well together on the bench. Not that we always agree, but we communicate so effectively. I’m losing somebody who I completely trust. We have experienced a lot together and he has become like a brother to me."

Mendoza will need to be a quick learner on the job, as big-spending Mets owner Steve Cohen reportedly is "aiming to compete in 2024" after his club finished this past season at 75-87. One Yankees official told Martino that Mendoza heading to the Mets is "a big loss" for the Bronx Bombers, and Cohen likely is hoping that proves to be true beginning next spring.