Q&A with Andy Green: Mets manager talks recent surge, leadership style

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Entering Monday’s action against the Padres, the Mets have won nine of their last 12 games and are 22-22 since Andy Green took over as interim manager, replacing Carlos Mendoza on June 26.

In a recent sit-down with MLB.com at Citi Field, Green answered questions on a wide range of topics, from the Mets’ winning ways to his grandmother’s influence.

MLB.com: Ever since the MLB Trade Deadline came and went, the Mets have played well. Why?

Andy Green: I think the group is confident and resilient. I think part of that is we are trying to set a foundation for what we are trying to do going forward – not looking backward. We can’t fix the first four months of the season. You can only dominate the last two. I think the guys have collectively taken that mindset and said, “There is good baseball to be played, and we should go play it.”

MLB.com: The team looks more relaxed now.

Green: I think there is more joy on the baseball field. Part of that comes from people making their Major League debut. I think it’s such an energizing thing to see young guys touch their dreams for the first time. We had Nate Lavender, Jefry Yan and Jack Weisenburger [make their debuts]. We had a number of guys who dreamt of being here their entire lives.

MLB.com: What has been the biggest improvement you have seen since the Deadline?

Green: I think resilience. We haven’t played perfect baseball. Every game, there is a mistake that is made. Instead of that mistake feeling fatal, we have accepted it as part of playing baseball. You don’t play perfectly. You have the mindset that that is not going to sink us. We are going to win a baseball game.

MLB.com: You helped develop youngsters like Carson Benge, A.J. Ewing and Nolan McLean. How proud are you that they have played a significant role in the big leagues this year?

Green: Those guys have qualities that we celebrate as an organization. They are resilient, adaptable and have executed under pressure. They love baseball. That’s credit to the scouting group that identified them. That’s a credit to the coaches that worked with them.

MLB.com: Why have these players thrived in the big leagues?

Green: They have what it takes to be great here. They have short memories, which you need in the game of baseball. It’s a tough game. They have resilience after adversity. They compete and are willing to challenge themselves and grow. They are not scared. It’s impressive.

MLB.com: I spoke to some of the young players on the team. They say, “I love Andy.” The veterans say you are “a straight shooter.” Where did you get that trait of becoming a straight shooter?

Green: I think people deserve two things from a leader: They deserve truth and empathy in what we ask these guys to do. It is really hard. It takes certain qualities to do what we need them to do. The truth part of it is telling them exactly what you need from them in order for us to be collectively great. That’s what everyone is solving here. When you give the truth and place it with some expectations, I think that sets the culture. That is important to me. Having been a player, all you ever wanted was someone to look you in the face and tell you where you stood, what you needed to do and get more opportunities, and do it with some measure of understanding that what you are asking is not necessarily easy.

I’ve had the reps in a lot of different seats. I’ve been a Major League coach and a manager before this. I’ve been able to run a farm system. They are all unbelievable privileges to interact with great athletes. The more you do that, the more comfortable you get with hard conversations.

MLB.com: When you were growing up, how was your father towards you? Was he a straight shooter?

Green: I grew up without a dad. My grandmother and mother raised me. My grandmother was a physical education teacher for 49 years. She taught me how to play sports. She was harder on me than any dad can ever be on a son. She was not afraid of the truth. A lot that is in me – that makes me grind today – is because of the way she pushed me. That’s a unique thing to say about a grandmother.

MLB.com: What has been the most pleasant surprise since you have taken over the Mets?

Green: We have incredibly good human beings. They are about one another. They want each other to be successful. They celebrate each other when they are successful. You have a bunch of veterans who have gravitated to the young guys. When you are distant from a Major League clubhouse, which I was from the other roles I was in, I didn’t realize how many good people we had. We have a bunch of really good people, and you want to see good people have a ton of success.

MLB.com: It seems like the veterans have gravitated to the younger guys.

Green: It’s a credit to who they are as people. You can look at all of these veterans from Francisco Lindor to Bo Bichette to Marcus Semien to Juan Soto. They have been unbelievable big brothers to the young position guys who have come up. Sean Manaea has been unbelievable to Nolan McLean, Zac Thornton and Christian Scott in the early part of their journey.

MLB.com: You are managing for the first time since 2019, when you were with the Padres. What’s the biggest thing that you have learned now that you didn’t know back then?

Green: I wouldn’t say I didn’t know this, but it all starts with belief and cultivating people to believe in themselves. Belief precedes performance. You can get everything strategically correct, but if you leave belief, trust and respect out, you are not going to get to where you want to go. I would say I had an intellectual understanding of that, but I don’t know if my daily interactions were the best at cultivating that consistently.

MLB.com: What’s ahead for Andy Green?

Green: We have [almost] two months of the baseball season left. I want to do some special things here, and that is as far as my vision and field go right now. When I came into this role, I came in with the expectation that I would transition back to my old role [as senior vice president of player development]. I wouldn’t point in any other direction. So for [almost] two months, I’m locked in on making this as good as possible.