Syracuse Mets Announce 2023 Coaching Staff

SYRACUSE, NY – The 2023 Syracuse Mets coaching staff has been announced and features new names but most with multiple years of experience in the New York Mets’ organization. Manager Dick Scott, Hitting Coach Collin Hetzler, Pitching Coach Kyle Driscoll, Bench Coach J.P. Arencibia, and Development Coach/Bullpen Coach Jordan Kraus are all beginning their first season with Syracuse. Scott, Hetzler, and Driscoll have worked for the New York Mets in other roles prior to 2023. Arencibia and Kraus are entering their first season in the organization. Additionally, Athletic Trainer Hiroto Kawamura is back for his third season and will be joined by Athletic Trainer Vanessa Weisbach in her first season with Syracuse and seventh total within the Mets’ organization. Performance Coach Alex Tavarez enters his second season with Syracuse and tenth in the Mets’ organization.

Manager Dick Scott brings a wealth of coaching and player development experience as he begins his first year as Syracuse’s manager and his tenth total season in the New York Mets organization. Scott was New York’s coordinator of coaching development and instruction the last two seasons. Before that, Scott served as the Miami Marlins’ Director of Player Development from 2018-2020. The Ellsworth, Maine native was with the Mets previously as New York’s bench coach in 2016 and 2017, New York’s Director of Player Development from 2013-2015, and the club’s Minor League Field Coordinator in 2011 and 2012. Before joining the Mets, Scott was the Minor League Field Coordinator for the Houston Astros in 2010 and the Toronto Blue Jays’ Director of Player Development from 2001-2009. Syracuse was affiliated with Toronto for all of those years except 2009. Scott was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 17th round of the 1981 amateur draft and played ten seasons professionally: eight in the Yankees’ system and two with the Oakland Athletics’ organization. Scott appeared in three major league games with the Athletics in 1989. That same season, Oakland won the World Series. After his final season as a player, Scott began his coaching career in the Athletics’ organization, managing various levels from 1991-1996 before joining the Arizona Diamondbacks to manage Low-A South Bend in 1997. Scott was named the Arizona League Manager of the Year in 1991, Northwest League Manager of the Year in 1992, and the California League Manager of the Year in 1994. Scott was also named the 1994 Minor League Manager of the Year by USA Today Baseball Weekly. After his seven seasons of managing, Scott became the Advance Scout for the Arizona Diamondbacks from 1998-2001 before joining Toronto in November of 2001.

Hitting Coach Collin Hetzler begins his first season with Syracuse and his third season in the New York Mets’ organization. Hetzler spent the previous two seasons as the Mets’ complex hitting coordinator at New York’s spring training complex in Port St. Lucie, FL. Last season, Hetzler was named the Mets Minor League Staff Member of the Year. The Fort Worth, TX native played two seasons of college baseball at Galveston College before playing his final two collegiate seasons at Houston Baptist University in 2011 and 2012. Hetzler was an assistant coach for the baseball team at Houston Baptist in 2015, 2016, and 2017, and he earned an MBA from Houston Baptist University in 2017. Prior to joining the Mets, Hetzler worked as a hitting trainer and the operations manager at Driveline Baseball in Kent, WA. Driveline is a data-driven baseball development program. While Hetzler never played professionally, his stepfather, Brian Milner, was a member of the Toronto Blue Jays’ organization and played for the major league squad in 1978.

Pitching coach Kyle Driscoll is joining Syracuse for his first season in Central New York and his fourth season in the New York Mets’ organization. Driscoll is also New York’s Assistant Pitching Coordinator. Last season, Driscoll was the Mets’ complex pitching coordinator in Port St. Lucie, FL. Driscoll was the Mets’ pitching movement/rehab coach in 2021 and served as the pitching and movement analyst in 2020. Driscoll also worked at Cressey Sports Performance as their pitching coordinator from 2019-2021 as well as their pitching coach and strength coach from 2018-2019. Cressey Sports Performance is a high-performance training facility that also offers pitching instruction. Driscoll played college baseball at Rutgers University from 2014-2017.

Bench Coach J.P. Arencibia is beginning his first season with Syracuse and in the New York Mets’ organization. Arencibia played ten seasons professionally, including parts of six years in the majors with Toronto (2010-2013), Texas (2014), and Tampa Bay (2015). The Miami, FL native played three seasons of college baseball at the University of Tennessee before he was drafted in the first round of the 2007 MLB draft by the Toronto Blue Jays. Prior to joining the Mets, Arencibia was an analyst on Miami Marlins broadcasts on Bally Sports Florida and on Marlins Radio.

Development Coach/Bullpen Coach Jordan Kraus is in his first year with both Syracuse and the New York Mets’ system. Prior to joining the Mets, Kraus was the associate pitching coordinator and a strength and conditioning coach at Cressey Sports Performance. Kraus pitched professionally for six years in independent leagues after pitching and playing shortstop in college at Wheeling Jesuit University. Kraus also served as a strength and conditioning coach and pitching coach at T3 Performance in Ohio and coached college baseball for three years.

Athletic Trainer Hiroto Kawamura is back for his third season with the Syracuse Mets. This is Kawamura’s eighth season in the Mets’ organization. The Japan native previously worked as an athletic trainer for the Fresno Grizzlies (the Triple-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants), the Pawtucket Red Sox (the Triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox), and the Texas State University baseball team.

Athletic Trainer Vanessa Weisbach joins the Syracuse staff in 2023 for the first time and is in her seventh season in the Mets’ organization. Last season, Weisbach was the Athletic Trainer for Double-A Binghamton.

Performance Coach Alex Tavarez also begins his second season with the Syracuse Mets and his tenth year in the Mets’ organization. Previously, Tavarez was the Performance/Strength and Conditioning Coach for High-A St. Lucie in 2017 and 2018, for Low-A Columbia in 2016, and for the Gulf Coast League Mets in 2014 and 2015.

Season tickets and Flex Plans for the 2023 Syracuse Mets baseball season are on sale now. Single game tickets will go on sale Saturday, March 4, 2023. Fans can purchase tickets at the Onondaga Coach Ticket Office at NBT Bank Stadium or over the phone at 315-474-7833 during regular office hours (Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) or online anytime at SyracuseMets.com.

Opening Day for the Syracuse Mets is scheduled for Friday, March 31st at Worcester. Syracuse’s home opener is Tuesday, April 4th at 2:05 p.m. at NBT Bank Stadium against the Rochester Red Wings. Please follow the Syracuse Mets on social media or check SyracuseMets.com for the most up-to-date information on 2023 Syracuse Mets tickets, promotions, schedule, and more.