Wes Mendes earns Opening Day start for FSU baseball, weekend rotation set

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Wes Mendes earns Opening Day start for FSU baseball, weekend rotation set

FSU baseball’s Wes Mendes talks getting Opening Day start

Wes Mendes will start Opening Day for Florida State baseball against James Madison.

Semioles head coach Link Jarrett said the lefty has earned the start, and he felt comfortable with him as the program’s Friday night starter when he set the rotation. FAU transfer lefty Trey Beard and Virginia transfer righty Bryson Moore will start on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

Mendes had a 5.42 ERA and a 7-3 record last season, with 90 strikeouts and 39 walks. He’s added a cutter to his pitch mix, which he hopes can help him generate weak contact, and said he “refined” his changeup.

“All his stuff is there, and the stuff has improved, and the data that we get, the metrics on every pitch will tell you that,” Jarrett said. “He’s got to stay focused in his mechanics and finish these pitches and allow the pitch count to stay on schedule.”

Mendes struggled with consistency at times last season, but with new pitches in his arsenal and work with a sports psychologist, Mendes feels confident ahead of Opening Day.

At his best, Mendes can get strikeouts in bunches, but when his putaway pitches didn’t hit last season, his pitch count grew, and it allowed opponents to generate consistent contact and run-scoring opportunities. He hopes the cutter addition and overall refinement of his arsenal will help with putting away batters earlier in the count.

With Friday night responsibilities, Mendes said he’s excited to be the tone-setter for the team.

“It’s awesome to be able to have the trust of the coach to go out there on Friday night, get the series started, get the team going,” Mendes said. “That was a big thing for me this summer, was working on consistency, staying consistent. Last year, I felt like I was very up and down. I had these peaks and valleys. This year, it’s more just about being my average self at all times, take it pitch by pitch.

You’re just throwing the ball to the catcher at the end of the day. I’ve done that a million times in my life.”

Behind Mendes, Beard is one of the top-ranked draft-eligible players, ranked as the 64th best prospect by the MLB, and he comes to Tallahassee after a standout year with FAU.

He earned preseason All-American honors from Perfect Game, and he’s expected to be one of the top pitchers in the nation. He held a 3.14 ERA and 7-1 record in 15 starts for the Owls last season, and he had a 118-strikeout-to-32-walk ratio.

The standout pitch in his pitch mix is his changeup, which, paired with his fastball, gives Beard a lethal primary and secondary pitch combination.

He’s got some exceptional pitches, and when you watch the command, there was probably one inning that I recall he wasn’t really on the screws with the stuff. That changeup is spectacular. And I say that, am I giving a scouting report? Everybody we play is going to be able to dive into this and know it’s exceptional,” Jarrett said.

“One of the keys to this is that you have a plus secondary pitch that you can command and that you know how to use when you have opportunities to finish hitters and get strikeouts. He has done that. He seems to have poise. He understands himself. He understands the things going on around him in the game.”