Hensley Meulens has emerged as a "strong frontrunner" to be the Mets' next bench coach, according to SNY's Andy Martino.
Reports surfaced on Wednesday that the team had interviewed Meulens for the position. The 52-year-old has served as the Giants' bench coach for the last two seasons after spending the previous seven years as the team's hitting coach.
Carlos Beltran was traded from the Mets to the Giants at the 2011 trade deadline, and the new Mets manager should have some familiarity with Meulens from his time in San Francisco.
Meulens appeared in 182 major league games in his career, but his playing career spanned over 17 seasons, seeing time not just in the big leagues, but Japan, Korea and Mexico, as well.
After retiring as a player in 2002, he immediately began rising through the minor league coaching ranks before finally landing with the Giants in 2010. He's been a part of three World Series titles with San Francisco, and interviewed for the Yankees managerial job before Aaron Boone eventually got the job.
A native of Curacao, Meulens has managed the Netherlands to back-to-back 4th place finishes in the World Baseball Classic, both in 2013 and 2017. He was also on the coaching staff when the team finished 7th in 2009.
