Former Met Mark Canha provides insight into managerial candidate Craig Counsell

There are not many people positioned to understand the following two subjects: What it is like to play under the unique pressure inherent to being a Met in 2023, and what it is like to play for Mets managerial candidate Craig Counsell.

Backup catcher Omar Narvaez, a former Milwaukee Brewer, is one who fits that description -- and outfielder/first baseman Mark Canha’s perspective on Counsell is even fresher. On Aug. 1, the Mets traded Canha to Milwaukee, where he excelled down the stretch and played in the Wild Card series.

On Friday, I posed two questions to the thoughtful Canha:

-- Explain to someone who does not watch the Brewers every day why Counsell is considered a top manager.

-- Would he succeed in Queens?

Here are Canha’s answers:

Question 1:

“He reminds me a lot of Bob Melvin [Canha played for Melvin in Oakland]. As a manager, it is important to have a balance between having your hand on the wheel and also being able to get out of the way and let players blossom and figure things out on their own. But at the same time not just being aloof. There is a fine line there. And I think Craig, like Bob Melvin, really understands how to balance that.

“The Brewers had a very young team when I got there. A lot of rookies playing every day. The way that he and that staff had the young guys working, it was a system. There was a structure to it, and it was a well-oiled machine, so to speak. And then the way he communicates and lets the older players do their thing, but also at the same time holds everybody accountable, I really liked that.

“You watch him, and the way he carries himself in the dugout -- it’s just laid back. It creates an environment that is comfortable to play under. It’s laid back, with an understanding that we have a certain level of expectations of what we’re going to do every day, and how we’re going to carry out our business every day, in terms of preparation.”

Question 2:

“I don’t anticipate [New York] would be a problem for him. The guy played for a lot of years. He is accustomed to performing under pressure, and I don’t see how that changes when you’re in New York. Milwaukee and New York are two very different places with two very different levels of pressure, undoubtedly.

“But I think a guy like Counsell would be great. He would be able to carry that relaxed vibe in. If he could carry that into New York, that would be very helpful.

“There were times last year where it felt like the sky was falling, and it was tough. That’s not to say that Buck [Showalter] didn’t do a good job managing that, but it’s tough for anybody, as a player, to handle that. You need a guy like Craig or a guy like Buck to be there to weather the storms and make it feel like -- this is still baseball, the game we’re used to playing. Buck did it very well, and I think Craig would do it just as well.”