How Mets DH Daniel Vogelbach reacted to his trade from Pittsburgh

NEW YORK – Daniel Vogelbach considered it a blessing to be wanted.

Getting sought after by the top team in the NL East? That was the cherry on top for the Mets' new designated hitter.

"The one thing you can control is being a good teammate and making winning your No. 1 priority," Vogelbach said.

"That's the one thing I can promise. I'm going to play with energy and try to be a good person every single day."

Vogelbach walked into his new clubhouse on Saturday afternoon and salivated over the chance to play meaningful baseball in August and September.

The Mets acquired the hard-hitting lefty from the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday for right-hander Colin Holderman.

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Vogelbach hit 12 home runs and had 34 RBI in 75 games this season with the Pirates, while slashing .228/.338/.430. The 29-year-old has hit especially well against righties in his career with an .817 OPS.

"He should be a good fit for us," manager Buck Showalter said. "I always like people who don't take themselves too seriously but take the game seriously."

Vogelbach has spent seven seasons in the majors including stops in Seattle, Milwaukee and Toronto.

Helping the transition to New York is the fact that Vogelbach has already crossed paths with some of his new teammates. Vogelbach played with Taijuan Walker in Seattle and competed on the same high school travel team as Francisco Lindor and Tomas Nido.

"He's hard to forget," Nido said. "He's a great clubhouse guy. He's going to fit right in. One of the funniest teammates I've had."

Vogelbach chatted with former teammate Jay Bruce on Friday night after finding out about the trade. Bruce gave him a scouting report about what to expect in Queens, drawing on his own experience from 2016 to 2018.

"He had nothing but unbelievable things to say about it," Vogelbach said. "He basically just told me to enjoy it and that I was going to have the time of my life."

General manager Billy Eppler acknowledged that the Mets were not only drawn to Vogelbach for his power, but for a patient approach that's contributed to a career-best 117 OPS+ this season.

"I want to win. I'm super competitive," Vogelbach said. "I've been that way since I was a kid. To be wanted by a team that has one goal in mind and that's to win a World Series, it makes you feel good and it makes you want to play."

Sigh of relief

Nido was back in the lineup on Saturday night less than 24 hours after getting a left hand contusion. The Mets catcher went for an X-ray between innings that came back negative. Showalter said Nido didn't want to come out of the game, but had trouble gripping the bat after getting crossed up behind the plate.

“It should be fine,” said Nido, who was relieved to have just a bruise. “I tested it out. It's fine. It's on the upper part of the hand. We just wanted to make sure there was no bone fracture or anything like that. It's all good."

Moving in

The Mets announced Saturday that they acquired catcher Michael Perez from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for cash. The team was in need of reinforcements with starting catcher James McCann on the IL with a left oblique strain.

Infielder Travis Blankenhorn was designated for assignment to clear room on the roster.

The 29-year-old Perez hit .150 for the Pirates this season with six home runs and 11 RBIs in 39 games.

Sean Farrell is a high school sports reporter for NorthJersey.com. For full access to live scores, breaking news and analysis from our Varsity Aces team, subscribe today. To get breaking news directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter and download our app. 

Email: farrells@northjersey.com 

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This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: How Mets DH Daniel Vogelbach reacted to his trade from Pittsburgh