Starting pitcher Sean Manaea signed a two-year, $28 million deal with the New York Mets this winter, and he's rocking a new haircut to celebrate.
He reported to Port St. Lucie with his typical amount of glorious hair. But now just three weeks away from Opening Day, he made a drastic decision with his patented locks.
It's been four years since the southpaw last got a haircut. That streak ended over the weekend. He not only cut off his long hair, but Manaea also shaved off his beard. It's safe to say that he looks like a completely different dude.
— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) March 3, 2024
That's one drastic change. Of course, this was accompanied by some jokes from Mets fans on X (formerly Twitter). Former Mets ace Jacob deGrom was also known for his long hair upon making landfall in the majors during the 2014 season. After keeping it for a few years, he cut it short ahead of 2018, which was his first of two straight Cy Young performances. So, people are jokingly hoping for history to repeat itself.
sean manaea this season https://t.co/Av7Nw8dvbp pic.twitter.com/Aq935PdpIX
— steph (@whutyearisit) March 3, 2024
One can imagine the southpaw would welcome that kind of performance with open arms. Manaea has landed in New York with hopes of getting his career back on the right track. After twirling a 3.91 ERA in 2021 for the Oakland Athletics, things haven't gone as smoothly in the last couple of years. The left-hander posted a 4.96 ERA in 2022 with the San Diego Padres and a 4.44 mark in 2023 for the San Francisco Giants.
Furthermore, he didn't spend much time in the Giants' rotation. He entered 2023 having made just three career relief appearances in the big leagues. Manaea came out of the bullpen 27 times for San Francisco last year.
While it seems like this overdue grooming session came out of nowhere, the 32-year-old is probably hoping for a change in luck. His first spring training appearance of the year for New York didn't go smoothly. He allowed three runs on seven hits and three strikeouts in 2.2 innings against the Miami Marlins on March 2.
