Long before they became major-league managers for the New York Mets and Houston Astros, Carlos Mendoza and Joe Espada exchanged baseball ideas between mouthfuls of ice cream. The Pensacola Pelicans’ double-play partners doubled as roommates inside a home neither of them owned. Both men neared a career crossroads playing in an independent league, but took solace in talking shop.
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“It was pretty cool, looking back now. I saw the game in a certain way. He saw the game in a certain way,” Mendoza said. “We would be discussing, eating ice cream, getting fat. But at the same time, the next day, we knew we would be playing in 120 degrees and get on a 20-hour bus ride.”
From those bowls of ice cream and brutal bus rides came a bond between two baseball junkies. Espada and Mendoza spent two seasons together in independent ball, manning the middle infield while forming a foundation for what followed. Coaching came naturally to both men, even if neither realized it at the time.
“They were the two that led the team; literally, where they went, the team went,” said James Gamble, who was in charge of the Pelicans’ player acquisitions. “They knew when it was time to turn it on. They knew when the team needed a little rest. Those guys were always the team leaders.”
On Friday night, the two friends and first-year managers will lead their clubs into a critical series at Citi Field, completing a circuitous journey catalyzed during the dwindling days of their playing careers.
Both managers have recently guided turnarounds. For the first time since the second week of May, the Mets, winners of 15 of their past 19 games, are a .500 team. After starting the season 7-19, the Astros have won seven consecutive games and reside at .500 for the first time all year. Before things improved, the two managers leaned on each other.
“Just trying to keep each other upbeat and positive and reminding one another how long the season is,” Espada said. “It’s a tough job — two big markets and expectations are high. We tell each other to stay calm, always remind each other about how hard we’ve worked to get here and that things are going to be all right.”
Espada is four years older than Mendoza. The two men have followed an almost identical career trajectory, finishing runner-up in too many managerial searches to count before landing coveted gigs with contending clubs. In most of Espada’s interviews, he named Mendoza as a potential member of his coaching staff — after their shared time together in Pensacola, Mendoza worked under Espada as his bench coach in winter ball and the two coached in the New York Yankees’ organization. Mendoza ended up replacing Espada as the Yankees’ major-league infield coach after Espada left to join the Astros.
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“He is really good at connecting with both the Latin players and the American players — that’s very important. Very patient, detail-oriented. Always asking questions, always wanting to learn,” Espada said.
“He had a way of talking to people that it came across as personable, very respectful. He worked on those small things that made you be able to bridge the gap with veteran players, young players. He just knew how to connect with people.”
Of Espada, Mendoza said: “He was always smart. He always saw the game differently, paid attention to details.”
The two middle infielders only knew of one another before arriving in Pensacola. Neither reached the majors as a player, but both got as far as Triple A. The Oakland A’s drafted Espada in 1996, and he stayed with the organization through 2000. Mendoza began his professional career as a 17-year-old in 1997 with the San Francisco Giants, the organization he stayed with through 2003. The A’s played the Giants in every affiliate so Mendoza and Espada often played against one another through the different levels.
Through the eyes of someone like Gamble, who was charged with putting together a roster for an independent team, Mendoza and Espada jumped out as quality players. Espada, Gamble said, was a sparkplug, with flashy defense and some pop. Mendoza maintained a consistent personality and was never too high or low with emotion, Gamble said. Even after Mendoza moved on from Pensacola, Gamble would still call Mendoza to ask his opinions on players.
“Putting the two of them together up the middle, you can’t go wrong,” Gamble said. “You got a switch-hitting second baseman that could move over to play short if you needed him to. But then you had Joe, who, by all accounts, was a fringe major leaguer that was playing shortstop in independent ball. With them two, you were going to be better than most of the teams you played against.”
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Pensacola finished 108-80 during the two seasons Espada and Mendoza played, though success didn’t diminish some of their struggles. All of Mendoza’s family remained in Venezuela. Espada’s girlfriend lived in Mobile, Ala.
Living together allowed them to counter the loneliness and lean on each other. A Pensacola realtor named Wanda Lewis helped, too. Lewis hosted both players during both of their stints with the team — and still stays in touch with the managers she helped mold.
“We call her our U.S. mom,” Mendoza said. “She took care of us.
“It was hard for us. We were barely making any money. It’s basically toward the end of your career, where it’s like, what’s next? For her to be able to take care of us, it was huge. When we needed it the most, she took care of us. Not one dime came out of our pocket.”
For 20 years, Mendoza and Espada didn’t just stay friends with one another — they kept in touch with Lewis, too. That’s one reason why Gamble likes to call both managers “plus human beings.” Mendoza and Espada have stayed in contact with Lewis over the years mainly through text messages. This weekend expects to be different. Lewis plans on attending the series at Citi Field for a full circle moment.
“You look back now,” Mendoza said, “and it makes you appreciate it all even more.”
(Photo of Joe Espada and Carlos Mendoza: Megan Briggs / Getty Images)