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NEW YORK (AP) — Carlos Mendoza was tired after getting home to Tampa, Florida, following a cross-country flight. About 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 5, 9-year-old son Andres came up to him.

“Dad, I’m bored. I want to go out and play catch. I want to do some picks,” Mendoza remembered his son saying.

Soon after they started drills, Mendoza’s phone rang. New York Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns was on the line. Mendoza returned to the house, sat down and learned he was being hired to manage the Mets.

“My wife’s crying and my boys are jumping,” Mendoza said.

He was introduced Tuesday as the team’s fifth manager since Terry Collins left after the 2017 season, given a three-year deal with a club option for 2027. The 43-year-old had spent six seasons in the Bronx as a Yankees coach, the past four as Aaron Boone’s bench coach.

“One of the unique things about Carlos that people told me about him and that I felt through the interview process is this is someone with tremendous people skills, that people like, get along with, can relate to, but he holds people to incredibly high standards and he talks about accountability,” Stearns said.

The New York Mets promptly selected Carlos Mendoza, a former New York Yankee bench coach, as their new manager after losing out on Craig Counsell.

Following the announcement, Mendoza spoke to Emily Reppert of MLB.com. He thanked his wife, Francis, for giving up her career and life in their native Venezuela to support his baseball dreams during his inaugural press conference on Tuesday at Citi Field:

The choice of Carlos Mendoza deviates from the Mets’ recent practice of appointing prominent managers. Mendoza is taking the helm to get the Mets their first World Series since 1986, even though this is his first major league managerial position.

New York Yankees bench coach Carlos Mendoza appears to making the switch across town as the Mets are reportedly hiring him as manager.

The Mets have been searching for a new manager since firing Buck Showalter at the beginning of last month and appear to be closing on announcing the veteran skipper’s replacement.

And despite reports that the Mets were targeting Craig Counsell, the organization is hiring Mendoza as their new manager, according to ESPN.

 

The 43-year-old is reportedly switching the Bronx for Queens after 15 years with the Yankees across multiple roles.

He managed in the low minor leagues in 2011-12, before most recently spending the last four seasons as Aaron Boone’s bench coach.

Now that the managerial post has been filled, the Mets need to surround Mendoza with a strong coaching staff. To help the rookie manager in this important function, it is expected that they will search for a bench coach with prior big league managing experience.

The Mets appear to be set for a busy winter as they prepare for next season.

Mendoza also thanked their sons, Adrian and Andres.

“Thank you for being there and for understanding daddy’s away from home for a long time. One thing I’m gonna tell you is now you’re coming home — to New York,” Mendoza said.

He said that his sons asked him if they will be able to practice on the field at Citi Field now that he is manager, and that “the answer to that is yes — you’re coming with me, and you’re gonna get to spend some time in practice as well.”